How Yordenis Ugás became a Las Vegas boxing headliner

Yordenis Ugás mislaid a combat 13 years agone Sunday.

It was an important one. An Olympic semifinal against France’s Daouda Sow.

It was harrowing. Depressing, even, for the Cuban to permission the Beijing Olympics with conscionable a Bronze medal.

It’s besides the crushed he’s successful Las Vegas, preparing to combat Manny Pacquiao, the iconic, legendary, eight-division champion, atop a Fox Pay-Per-View paper from T-Mobile Arena connected Saturday night.

When Ugas (26-4, 12 knockouts) returned to Cuba aft the Olympics, thing felt different.

“I was conscionable bushed of being determination successful Cuba and losing,” helium said this week, done a translator. “I went into a depression. I wanted a change, and I wanted to get out.”

So Ugás, who had been a Cuban amateur champion for 12 consecutive years, decided to leave. The difficulties Cuban athletes look defecting to the United States person been well-documented, and Ugás’ way to state wasn’t a cleanable one.

For 2 days, helium was stuck astatine oversea with 20 different Cubans, hoping to scope Mexico. An “extremely difficult” travel culminated with Ugás yet reaching the United States, wherever helium faced a full caller level of challenges.

He’d near his household successful Cuba, with nary assurances connected erstwhile he’d get to spot them again. He wouldn’t reunite with his parent for 9 years.

There were inactive ups and downs successful America. He turned pro, rapidly racking up 11 consecutive wins to commencement his career. Things were moving out.

Then they weren’t. He mislaid 3 of his adjacent 7 fights, prompting him to locomotion distant from the sport. He moved his grooming campy from Miami to Las Vegas, linking up with chap Cuban Ismael Salas, who runs Salas Boxing Academy and has trained respective satellite champions.

“For a agelong time, helium has been struggling present successful the United States,” Salas said this week. “We are immigrants, and each migrant has to set to the mode of living. Despite each of the changes helium has been through, helium has had success. He needs to support moving for what helium loves, which is boxing.”

Since then, Ugas has risen up the welterweight ranks, repeatedly taking fights connected abbreviated announcement and earning wins implicit aggregate contenders successful the division. His lone nonaccomplishment successful his past 12 fights is simply a highly arguable determination to erstwhile titlist Shawn Porter, successful a combat astir boxing fans judge Ugás won.

From 1 Olympic medalist to another

There are boxing fans, and past determination are boxing superfans. Damian Lillard falls into the second category.

So it’s not astonishing that Lillard, the six-time NBA all-star, not lone knows Ugás but specifically reached retired to him connected Instagram to archer him helium was a fan. The 2 started talking, with Ugás utilizing a translation diagnostic to pass with Lillard.

When Lillard was successful Vegas grooming with the U.S. National Team, helium met up with Ugas astatine his gym.

“He works hard,” Lillard said successful a substance connection to the Review-Journal. “Has experienced ups and downs and continues to conflict forward. Excited for him to combat astatine this level and against a legendary combatant similar Pacquiao.”

So who’s Lillard picking?

“50/50,” helium said.

As precocious arsenic 2 weeks ago, Ugas wasn’t adjacent expected to beryllium warring Pacquiao. That duty had alternatively gone to undefeated unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. successful what boxing fans had billed arsenic the summer’s astir intriguing fight. But erstwhile doctors discovered a torn retina successful Spence’s oculus during a pre-fight screening, Ugás got the telephone to measurement in.

He was ready. He’d already been scheduled to combat connected the undercard, and helium has a past of performing good against southpaws. He besides had a ready-made sparring partner, featherweight imaginable and southpaw Robeisy Ramirez, already grooming astatine his gym.

Pacquiao, 42, is astatine the process extremity of a legendary vocation that includes signature wins each implicit his resume. On Saturday night, Ugás, who was ne'er expected to beryllium here, tin adhd Pacquiao to his.

Pacquiao has 300 times much Twitter followers than Ugás. You tin beryllium definite the Cuban doesn’t care.

Here’s what helium wants fans to cognize earlier helium makes the locomotion nether the Las Vegas lights.

“I’m a warrior,” helium said. “I’m a Cuban that fought for my freedom. I’m acceptable to bash large things.”

Contact Jonah Dylan astatine jdylan@reviewjournal.com. Follow @TheJonahDylan connected Twitter.