"Right now, Israel is taking time off and is currently working for Telefutura as one of the color commentators, something that he really enjoys doing. Israel wants to continue fighting, but is still taking the time off. He knows where my father and I stand about him fighting. We truly care about him and don't want him to get hurt...Israel knows where we stand about his desire to continue fighting. I guess we will cross that bridge when we get there, but I don't think Vazquez should fight Marquez again," stated Frank Espinoza, manager of Israel Vazquez, who revealed that despite his wishes, the former world champion still has the desire to continue fighting. Check out what else Espinoza had to say as he talks more about the future plans of Israel Vazquez as well as Abner Mares.
DH: First of all, thanks for taking the time to answer a couple questions. Is there anything you guys have planned for the summer, or any potential fights for the fall?
FE: Yes, we have a few things going on. We have prospect Abraham Lopez fighting on the undercard of Bradley-Abregu on July 17th. We also have Ronny Rios and Carlos Molina fighting in August.
DH: How is Israel Vasquez recovering and what are his future plans, if he's discussed them with you or your father? Is he leaning more towards retirement or does he want to fight on before he calls it a career?
FE: Right now, Israel is taking time off and is currently working for Telefutura as one of the color commentators, something that he really enjoys doing. Israel wants to continue fighting, but is still taking the time off. He knows where my father and I stand about him fighting. We truly care about him and don't want him to get hurt.
DH: There was a lot of concern for Israel, considering he had a pretty risky operation done and he really didn't look too good when he fought Angel Priolo, but did you have any concerns when he expressed a desire to fight Rafael Marquez again?
FE: Well, we did have some concerns, but we figured with him being off for nearly 2 years, it was ring rust. We still feel Marquez was the right direction for Vazquez, because Rafael was also inactive and they were relatively in the same boat. No guy had a real big edge over the other.
DH: Last year, Lou DiBella said he wasn't going to promote Jermain Taylor anymore following a string of tough fights in which he took a lot of punishment. Considering the close relationship you and your father have with Israel, have you expressed this concern at one time or another with him?
FE: Israel knows where we stand about his desire to continue fighting. I guess we will cross that bridge when we get there, but I don't think Vazquez should fight Marquez again.
DH: Abner Mares looked fantastic against Yonnhy Perez. I'm sure he made a lot of fans that night. Are you hoping to get him in the ring again soon or perhaps wait to see how the Joseph Agbeko-Yonnhy Perez rematch plays out?
FE: We were extremely pleased with Abner's performance against Perez. I thought he won that fight, but despite the draw, Abner's stock went up as a serious contender. Right now, we are looking to put Abner in an IBF eliminator in hopes to eventually fight the winner of Perez-Agbeko.
DH: I thought Abner grinded out a close decision the first go round, and so did a lot of the people who saw the fight. How do you, as a promoter, keep your fighter focused and not discouraged in the case of events like this?
FE: Well, in this case, it's not too hard because going into this fight against Perez, many people thought Mares was being thrown in too soon and at the end of that night, Abner Mares proved to the boxing world he belongs with the elite. The best thing for Abner, at this point, is to stay busy and that is our intentions.
DH: Finally, Rafael Marquez is going to be facing off against Juan Manuel Lopez. Assuming Lopez beats Bernabe Concepcion next month, how do you see that fight playing out?
FE: I think this is a tough fight for both men. Lopez is a young, fresh fighter wanting to prove something and Marquez is older and has been in a few wars, but he does have the experience over Juanma. I think at this point in each fighters career, I would lean towards Juanma, but I will always root for Marquez. He has earned my respect to the fullest and on Sept 18th, Team Vazquez will be rooting for Rafael Marquez.
DH: Thanks again Frankie. You're a class act and one of the good guys in the business.