The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WHEN Orlando Cuellar first heard about Valentino Knowles, he knew that he was a credible fighter that he would love to have in his camp in Miami, Florida. After watching Knowles’ successful debut over the weekend, Cuellar is confident that he has acquired across a “future” world champion.

In less than a month together, Cuellar helped the 24-year-old Knowles make a successful professional debut on Friday night at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California with a four round unanimous decision over hometown favorite Alejandro Ochoa in a super featherweight bout.

“I expect him to go very far. He’s definitely got the potential to be a great fighter,” Cuellar said. “The only one that should be in a position to stop Valentino is Valentino. If Valentino wants to make it, he can make it. He’s a gifted fighter, he’s determined to make it and he’s a God fearing man coming from a good family. He seriously wants to make it. I don’t see anything stopping Valentino.

“I’m from the Philadelphia area of the United States so I’ve seen many young fighters fall by the way side because they got with the wrong managers or the wrong promoters or the wrong trainers. If you don’t groom a young fighter properly and show him the way he need to go, you can ruin him. I believe Valentino is in the right camp with me. Gary Shaw, one of the biggest promotional company in the world, has produced many champions, have the power to get Valentino on the world stage. So I believe him will be the new face of boxing within a year.”

After watching his performance, Cuellar said once Knowles can continue to do the things that he’s been taught in the gym, he’s confident that he can have a storied career.

“He’s going to get tested one fight at a time,” said Cuellar, who is now getting Knowles ready for his second bout on 



February . “He will gradually step up the ladder and depending on . In his last fight, he fought a tough Mexican in his backyard and he showed that he was able to execute whatever instructions were given to him.

“So now we’re going to step it up a little more and this 

time he will probably be fighting an American. It will be a bit of a step up for him and based on how he handle that opponent, we’ll know where to go for the next level. But I believe that Valentino is going to leap frog pretty fast within 















10 months to become a top 12 or 10 fighter in the world.”

Knowles, who left town in January to begin his pro career after he fell short at the AIBA American Qualifying Round to earn a berth at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, England, said he was pleased to have gotten his first victory under his belt.

“It’s a good feeling to know that I started my pro career on the winning side and now I’m moving on,” he said. “What I expected was different. It was a new feeling, a new era, but I was very pleased with the way I went out there and performed.”

Based on his professional style of boxing as an amateur, Knowles said he was comfortable in making the transition to the pro ranks.

“I just had to work along with my coach Orlando Cuellar, who is the trainer for former world champion Glen Johnson. He helped me along the way and we went in there and did what we had to do. In training, we analyzed what were my weakness and we worked on my strength and it worked out.”

As he prepare for his next fight on February 22 in Washington, DC, Knowles said he’s really hyped up and ready to go, so he feel like “the sky is the limit for me. There’s no telling how far I can go in this business. There’s always room for improvement, so from what I saw, I didn’t drop the guy so I have to go back to the drawing board and work on some strength.

“But I’m satisfied with what I did in my first fight. It’s not an easy road. I’ve found the right trainer to get behind me and even thought I don’t have a manager, I’m still going to carry on with my career because I know there’s a point and time when I had to move on from the amateur ranks.”

Knowles publicly thanked the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture for keeping him on the government subvention that he was able to use when he was training as an amateur in Cuba. He also expressed his gratitude to his parents, family and friends who have also assisted and are praying for his development as a professional.

Although Yuriorkis Gamboa is the top ranked competitor in the world with an impressive 22-0 record at the age of 31, Cuellar said from what he’s seen so far, Knowles possesses the skills of a fighter who should not have any problems making the transition from the amateur ranks.

“He could probably make the adjustment faster than some of the other fighters who had extensive amateur background because he’s grasping the professional ranks better than any amateur that I’ve ever seen,” Cuellar said. “He’s really clicking with his pro style.

“Basically, the amateur style of boxing is a point system where the boxer scores primarily from the outside. In the pros, the first three round are basically outside. The next three rounds are half quarters inside. Then the last few rounds, you are in close quarters fighting hand to hand pretty much like combat and right now Valentino is pretty much in the third stage, which is kind of fast for a young fighter like him to grasp.”

Depending on the outcome of his second fight, Knowles is scheduled to head to Guadalajara, Mexico for his third fight on March 7. In April, he is due to return to California for his fourth fight as he step into the ring every “three-four weeks,” according to Cuellar.

“By his seventh fight, he could be fighting guys who are 22-4 and well experienced because of his ability to learn and pick up on the pro style,” Cuellar said. “The more experience fighters like to try and take advantage of the younger fighters, but I don’t expect them to push Valentino around. He’s a very good worthy student who should have a great pro career.”

Cuellar said he was first introduced to Knowles by name through another fighter. In their conversation, he was informed of Knowles’ ability and after they finally made contract about turning pro. Once they connected in Miami, Cuellar said Knowles went through a sparring session and the rest was history.

“He definietely looked like he had what he needed to go into the pros,” he said. “He had a high skill level. He was definitely strong, confident and focussed. We went into training, set up his pro fight and the promoters liked him. Everybody was very happy to his performance in his pro debut.

“He showed a maturity beyond his limited experience coming out of the amateur ranks. He’s a fierce fighter. He’s now fighting men, not boys. So I told him his amateur experience is important, but as a pro, he have to take it up another notch and that is what he did.”

Following the instructions to the letter, Cuellar said Knowles won every round and he’s now looking forward to his next appearance in the ring in DC in February.