Cuban boxer defects in Mexico after his professional debut

In an unprecedented event, a Cuban boxer who recently joined the Cuban national team, has defected after making his professional debut.

The event occurred last Friday night in La Paz, capital of Baja California Sur, Mexico, when light flyweight boxer (49 kg) Billy Rodríguez decided he would not return to Havana after defeating local Miguel Angel by technical knockout in the second round.

Since May 2021, Cuban boxers under the umbrella of the National Sports Institute were authorized by the government to fight with the status of “professionals,” and the same boxers who would represent the island nation in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics would star in the Mexican city of Aguascalientes under the name of “Tamers of Cuba”.

The Golden Ring company, chaired by the Mexican Gerardo Zaldívar, is in charge of managing the work of the “Domadores”, a Cuban franchise that made their debut four days after the start of the IBA World Boxing Series.

It is not yet clear what the future relationship of Cubans could be with the organizations that manage the sport professionally, such as the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the World Boxing Organization (WBO). What is known are the various conversations between Cuban managers and the organizations.

Rodríguez, 22, had won Cuba’s only gold medal at the Pan American Championships in Guayaquil, Ecuador last April. Cubans Herich Ruiz and Kevin Brown, who are already in south Florida in the United States, defected from the same tournament.

The Cuban Rodríguez should have started as a professional on June 5 in Buenos Aires, but the host Sergio Daniel Rosales failed to comply with the body weight requirements and the fight was canceled.

Rodríguez’s victory in La Paz must be counted as the tenth consecutive win for the Domadores de Cuba franchise since its debut last year.

Several comments on social media networks agree his new roadmap will include the United States as its next stop, with gyms in Miami or Las Vegas as a potential stop. Olympic and World medalists are currently training there, along with other Cuban prospects, under the tutelage of former Cuban national team coaches.

One day after Rodríguez’s performance in Mexico was praised in the official Cuban press, before his defection, the sports authorities criticized the fighter’s decision.

“We report that, turning his back on his contractual obligations, Billy Rodríguez decided not to return to Cuba after making his professional boxing debut last night. We condemn his attitude, oblivious to the commitment made,“ said the brief statement which appeared on social networks.

This is the fourth defection in the Cuban national team so far this year. The most notorious was confirmed at the end of June when the Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion, and three-time World Champion, Andy Cruz was discovered by local authorities trying to leave the island illegally by sea.

The bleeding of important athletes of Cuban sports, both active and retired, including Olympic champions and medalists, continues to worry Cuban sports fans in the midst of the impressive wave of migration that is once again shaking Cuban society.