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Why Robert Guerrero is everything that’s right with boxing

There are always guys like Robert Guerrero in boxing and for that, as fans, we should be thankful.

Guerrero epitomizes everything that is good about boxing. He's a good guy whose backstory is well known: He gave up a world title to be a stay-at-home dad and look after his children while his wife, Casey, fought leukemia.

Since Casey's recovery, Robert has teamed with her to bring awareness and raise money for the cause.

Robert Guerrero, right, was impressive in his loss to Keith Thurman in March. (Getty)
Robert Guerrero, right, was impressive in his loss to Keith Thurman in March. (Getty)

He's a sports hero in the best kind of way.

Guerrero returns to the ring on Saturday at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., when he takes on Aron Martinez in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions card that will be televised nationally on the NBC Sports Network.

On paper, it's a blowout, and Guerrero is a better than a 20-1 favorite to win.

Fans, though, owe a debt to Guerrero for his approach as much as anything. In an era when far too many fighters worry only about the bottom line and the implications of taking on a tough fight, Guerrero truly is one of those guys who will fight anyone, anywhere at any time.

He's coming off a loss to Keith Thurman in the main event of the inaugural PBC show that was broadcast live in prime time on NBC. As usual, Guerrero gave a rousing performance. Thurman has a chance to be special, and if truth be told, Guerrero was physically overmatched.

But he stood in there and battled Thurman on mostly even terms for 12 excellent rounds.

And when the fight was over, he was eager for more. He's long since given up calling out an opponent, but he's made it known he wants to fight regularly and he would prefer the toughest test possible each time.

"I come to fight anyone and hopefully that picks up and it does become a trend," Guerrero said. "Boxing fans are dying to see a bunch of fights get made, but the guys need to step up. And they just want to see good, hard, competitive fights. The great thing with [PBC creator] Al Haymon, he's not scared to make a fight.

"That's one of the things about Al Haymon people need to know. If you're not scared to fight, and you ask for a fight, he'll go out there and make it. It's one of the things I love about him."

Guerrero is one of a flood of fighters who signed with the notoriously media shy Haymon prior to the founding of the PBC.

He speaks with an insider's knowledge of Haymon and said Haymon's goal is simple: Bring boxing back to its glory days.

There was a time when baseball, boxing and horse racing were the three biggest sports in the country. But boxing and horse racing have lost much of their luster from the public.

There are a variety of reasons for that in boxing's case, but a large part of it has been the way the sport's fractured politics prevent the making of quality fights.

Now, Haymon is no innocent in this regard, as he's largely made the PBC a closed shop and doesn't, for instance, work with fighters signed to Top Rank, Golden Boy or Main Events, three of the sport's most significant promoters.

Guerrero, right, wants to keep testing himself against the very best. (Getty)
Guerrero, right, wants to keep testing himself against the very best. (Getty)

But Guerrero said he respects Haymon because of his approach. It mirrors his own.

"He has a great love of the sport," Guerrero said of Haymon. "He wants to make the sport big again and bring it back to his heyday. The experience I've had with Al Haymon so far has been great. It's been awesome. He's a mystery man to everybody, because like he always says, 'It's not about me; it's about the fighters.' He wants all of the attention on the fighters.

"He has a team that does its job and he expects us to do our job, as well. One of the great things about Al Haymon is that he understands it's not about him. It's great to know that somebody is backing you who loves the sport the way you do and is 100 percent backing you and hopes you become a star in the sport."

Early returns on the PBC have been encouraging and the ratings are impressive. But this is a marathon, not a sprint, and the PBC needs to not only maintain but improve its numbers over the long haul.

The PBC has done a very good job of matchmaking, particularly for its primetime shows. Now, fights like Guerrero-Martinez and the June 13 heavyweight title fight between Deontay Wilder and Eric Molina aren't great matches on paper.

But fighters like Guerrero, who love to compete and are eager to fight often, are the kind who will give the series long-term success.

He said the exposure he's gotten from fighting on NBC has been beyond anything he ever imagined or experienced before.

"I've gotten more attention and more of a bump from fighting Thurman on NBC than I did for fighting [Floyd] Mayweather on pay-per-view," Guerrero said.

As proof, he offers an experience from a few weeks ago. He was in the parking lot of a Safeway supermarket in Gilroy, Calif., when a car driven by an elderly woman he said looked more than 90 years old stopped.

He was concerned at first when she approached.

"I was thinking, 'Did I park in a handicap spot or something?' " Guerrero said. "But she had watched my fight on NBC and recognized me. And she said the way I fought reminded her of the way boxing used to be a long time ago.

"It was pretty crazy. But it shows you that the fans are desperate to see good fights and guys who actually go out there and take a risk and will fight. It's what I do and will always do. When people buy a ticket to see me fight or they tune in to watch me on TV, I feel a responsibility. I want to give them value and the way to do that is by coming to fight all the time."

And though he's far from the most gifted guy in the sport, it's that attitude that makes him so critical to its resurgence.

The more guys like Robert Guerrero there are in boxing, the better its overall health will be.