[Diego Lara]

Originally Posted by Brandon MacRea

As a guy with serious pro aspirations, why not jump into the amateur ring as often as possible? It's basically just sparring with a little more kick behind it to a pro, as there are very strictly enforced safety regulations and no negative repercussions/set backs to your fight career, and it acts to familiarize you with pre-fight nerves and whatnot

I don't see what Mike's concerned about?

Ya know, I was thinking the same thing too, but when it comes down to it, I just haven't reached that point where I'm completely comfortable in the ring. I can still get panicked and I make mistakes that beginners make, and Mike wants to eliminate all that doubt and hesitation before I start fighting. Yes, I still do hesitate to throw when I'm not sure I'll land, and I have a tendency to overthink that lets the other guy tee off on me. I don't want that to happen anymore, and my goal is to remove that last bit of doubt before I fight. Trust me, I'll be fighting come next January, I'm not far off from being at that point where I completely trust myself and my body. Once that happens, I'll be a formidable little monster, and I want my opponents to feel that even before they get in the ring with me. So the decision not to fight is per Mike's wisdom and experience, and between now and my first fight it's my job to make him completely confident that I can let loose in the ring and not be confused and handcuffed by someone with more speed or slicks. He has confidence in me, he says he just doesn't wanna put me in any kind of danger just yet when I have some pretty choice sparring at Top Rank. Also the fight was on short notice, and I was at 160 when I found out I had 2 weeks to make 147. That was my fault, and I take full responsibility for my laziness and lack of discipline. It's a mistake I will not make again. So cutting weight (I'm at 153 today) has taken alot out of me, and I think it was showing. Again, no one's fault but my own. I will come back stronger and badder than ever before. It's just a matter of time, and not much time at that.

[Liu Jin]

I don't see what Mike's concerned about?

One thing I should note about Mike that I found out while Diego was cleaning up:

He don't like his Fighters to lose unnecessarily, even in the Amateurs. He didn't want Eubank Jr. training hard today because he was BEGINNING to get a cold. In his lecture to Chris (who has a lot of Machismo, at times too much for his own good), Mike kept repeating "do you want to lose when you dun have to?"

He doesn't just want Diego to go in there and work, he wants him to make waves, and be utterly confident in the imminent bludgeoning of the opponent. He's not at all DISPLEASED with Diego, this is a kid who started Boxing nearly a year ago and is hanging with working Pros. But Mike knows Diego wants to fight Pro relatively soon, so he knows he can't be dropping Ammy fights on account of nerves or hesitation, so we're going to do everything possible to eliminate those concerns BEFORE Ammy bouts.

[Brandon MacRea]

It's just that as far as what translates to the big stage, wouldn't an amateur fight, which could act basically as "hard sparring", serve him best in terms of carryover? Getting a little antsy before hard sparring is one thing, getting in there with a guy who is intent on knocking you unconscious is another, and being molded is what the amateurs are for. I think it would only help and really speed up the process. The amateur ranks are a freebie to round yourself out for the pros.

But then I think, "Hey, I'm Brandon MacRea. What the fuck am I arguing with the Body Snatcher for?"

[Liu Jin]

lol It's hard to explain, but I think Mike's plan is a good one. It's all about turning heads and not looking LIKE an Amateur. He wants Diego to have Pro composure and comfort in a couple of Ammy fights. He's being molded in the sparring at Top Rank, and at home with me. Saturday morning we're gonna do 10 light rounds and nothing else (aside from maybe ropes to warm up).

See where I'm gettin' at?

[Brandon MacRea]

I guess it could come down to advertising, too. If they see the Top Rank boy ripping up the ammys, that's good publicity

[Diego Lara]

I think it's mostly about fine tuning the strengths I have and me realizing what kinda fighter I am (come-forward, pressure puncher) and learning how to make that work to my advantage. I honestly think I'm on the brink of realizing who I am in the ring, and being totally comfortable with my strengths and knowing my weaknesses. I'm sure I'll have a fight by the end of January. Right now, I'm just focusing on being completely comfortable in the ring and trusting my body. The last barriers are mental ones mostly, but I'm close to breaking them, and then I'll be ready to fight and fight amazing.

[Diego Lara]

Sorry bout the lack of posting this week, guys. Family is in town for xmas and it's been a crazy week with that and getting ready for xmas, but I have not neglected my training.

Let's start with Monday. It was a short day, and we watched 2 Castillo fights, vs Corrales (II) and vs. Mayweather. Both very good example of Castillo's come-forward, intelligent pressure style, which I emulate to the best of my ability.
No run, 2 rounds skip rope to warm up.

10 rounds light sparring. The objective of this sesh, more than anything, was to teach me to relax, especially under pressure, and maintain my composure through each round and Liu's changing tactics.
The first couple of rounds were like a warm-up, just getting a feel for the other's rhythm and moving around.
About the 4th or 5th, things started to heat up, and Liu got me with a few good body shots and hooks (my arch nemesis punch) that kinda got me riled up. I managed to hold my own, and not gas out, and I kept moving, kept throwing and did back him up real good a few times.
In the 8th and 9th, Liu started using his size advantage to wear me out, and I had to work hard to keep him off of me. Very Hatton-esque rounds these were. It was tough, but I held my own, and I didn't tire out like I thought I would. I finished strong in the tenth, and even had him backing up a little.
I was proud of myself, having never sparred 10 rounds before. I didn't gas out, didn't overthink my moves or hesitate to throw. I felt strong, and I think next time I spar at Top Rank, I should surprise Mike with my increased level of comfort and movement.

[Diego Lara]

Liu is out of town, and I skipped training on Tue due to work, but I was back and at full speed again on Wed.

[Diego Lara]

Wed 12/19: No fights today. Slept in a little and then 2m run at the park.

Gym time: Thought I might spar Lori or this girl Crystal today, but instead found myself the only one at the gym for most of the morning.

1 round stretch.
1 round ring jacks.
2 rounds shadowboxing. Still stepping in with the cross, instead of planting the right foot and pivoting. Need to work on that.
4 rounds heavybag. Standard work, need to pivot more on the cross. Mike says, "We gon work da sh-- outta you today!" He wasn't kidding.
4 rounds mitts, one break between 2nd and 3rd. Mostly one-twos, then start throwing hook and uppercut combos. I'm dying by the 2nd round, and by the end of the 4th, I'm swallowing the throwup that keeps rising in my throat. Still, it's what I needed to get back in the swing of things, and I can't lift my arms to the speedbag to save my life, so we go on to:

Conditioning:
3 sets of ab machine pyramid.
3x10 v-ups.

That's all I can manage for Wed. Sparring or not, it was one of the hardest workouts I've had of late. Mike has a knack for pushing you to the limits of your endurance, and then showing you that that percieved "limit" is only a mental roadblock which can be overcome by sheer will. Amen and firefox out.

[Diego Lara]

Thu 12/20: No fights this morning, slept in a little.
2m run.

Gym time:
1 round stretch.
2 rounds shadowboxing.
4 punishing rounds of mitt work with Mike. We focused almost exclusively on the 1-2 for the first two rounds. I was too stiff again, and Mike had to all but beat the stiff outta me and make me just THROW. Also still have that bad habit of stepping in with the right foot while throwing the cross. But when I removed these two obstacles in the 2nd round, I was throwing like a wrecking ball. I hit so hard it makes my wrists and arms ache all day....
Next two rounds we incorporated the hooks and uppercuts. It's true that when I'm tired, I often perform better cuz I just stop giving a f---
It was brutal work, but I did it. Need to incorporate more of these combos he's showing me into my sparring.
2 rounds heavybag. More of a cooldown really. Focus on maintaining stamina, throwing the combos slow but CORRECT.
2 rounds speed bag. Not bad, but not an better than other days.
2 rounds skip rope to finish.

Conditioning:
3 sets push up circuit. 15x12x10. Don't know how I had the strength to do this.
3x10 dips. That was all I could manage for the day. Slammed my knee into kitchen counter last night, and woke up unable to do much with my arms, so I talked to Mike and he said it was ok to take the day off. But only today, tomorrow will be business again, only with the gym closed and Liu gone I'm gonna have to improvise some new workout/ torture at home. I'll let ya'll know what I come up with. Firefox out.