When Robert Guerrero faces Aron Martinez on June 6 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California, it will mark the first time since 2012 that “The Ghost” has fought twice in the same calendar year.
Robert Guerrero's fight against Aron Martinez on June 6 will be just his sixth bout since defeating Michael Katsidis in April 2011. (Lucas Noonan/Premier Boxing Champions)
Guerrero’s action in the ring has been sporadic since winning a unanimous decision over Michael Katsidis in April 2011.
He had a 15-month layoff after that bout before defeating Selcuk Aydin in July 2012 and Andre Berto in November 2012. Then after losing to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in May 2013, Robert Guerrero took another 13 months off before winning a unanimous decision over Yoshihiro Kamegai in June 2014.
He has fought just once since then, dropping a unanimous decision to Keith Thurman in Las Vegas on March 7 in the main event of the first Premier Boxing Champions card, which aired on NBC.
“People talk about ring rust. Not being consistently in the ring and actually fighting, that does hurt you,” Guerrero said. “You don’t find out what you have unless you’re actually consistently in the ring.”
Guerrero (32-3-1, 18 KOs) will be fighting for the sixth time at 147 pounds. The southpaw began his professional career in 2001 at 126 and won a world championship at that weight in 2006. He then earned a 130-pound world title in August 2009 by defeating Malcolm Klassen.
In February 2010, Guerrero elected to withdraw from his upcoming clash with Katsidis in order to be with his wife, Casey, during her recovery from a bone marrow transplant.
“When they hear the stories of the steps I took to help my wife get healthy, how we put God first, that stuff really resonates into the hearts of the fans," Guerrero said. “I thank God that he’s used me as an example of humanity."
After beating Katsidis to win an interim world title at 135 pounds, Guerrero bested Aydin to win another interim title at 147.
Now Guerrero is set to become the first fighter to make his second appearance on a PBC card when he faces Aron Martinez (19-3-1, 4 KOs) in a bout airing live on NBC.
“It’s a blessing to be back on network television and be in back-to-back fights for the first time in a while,” Guerrero said. “When I had three fights in two years, that hurt me. But now, even with the loss, I feel like I’m on a roll. So now it’s time to keep that momentum going.”
