Vargas ready for shot at big time in fight against Bradley

CARSON, Calif. — When he was 8 years old, Jessie Vargas would watch boxing on TV with his father. He dreamed about one day being on TV himself, fighting in a title bout and being a world champion.

Now 26, Vargas has accomplished all of those things. But tonight on HBO, the Las Vegan enters a higher level of his career that is beyond those accomplishments.

He’ll face his toughest opponent to date in former world champion Timothy Bradley in the 12-round main event at the StubHub Center.

Vargas risks suffering the first blemish to an undefeated record and perhaps falling from grace. But if he wins, it opens up all sorts of big-money possibilities.

“This is why I wanted this fight,” said Vargas (26-0, nine knockouts). “I’ve never been afraid of a challenge, and I know what a fight like this means to my career. When I beat Tim Bradley, it opens up new doors for even bigger fights.”

Vargas, whose World Boxing Association junior welterweight title is not at stake, is hoping to add the World Boxing Organization interim welterweight belt to his resume tonight. The regular WBO welterweight belt belongs to Floyd Mayweather Jr., who won it from Manny Pacquiao on May 2 and has not relinquished it.

“I want to be known as a world champion in multiple divisions,” said Vargas, who probably will vacate his WBA 140-pound title after tonight and focus on fighting at welterweight. “It’s still a world championship belt. That’s very important to me and my legacy. I want to be able to compete at the highest level.”

Both fighters made the 147-pound limit at Friday’s weigh-in, each weighing 146.4 pounds. Vargas, who prepared for the fight by training at Mount Charleston, said it has been a normal week even though he will be fighting on a bigger stage against a big-name opponent.

“I’m ready to win,” he said after the weigh-in. “As soon as the bell rings — bam! — there’s going to be fireworks. I’m coming right after him.”

When Top Rank first approached Vargas about taking this fight, he was eager to do so. Yes, Bradley (31-1-1, 12 KOs) is a proven winner. But Vargas, who is five years younger than his opponent, thinks he is bigger, stronger and has enough experience to defeat Bradley.

Vargas’ manager, Cameron Dunkin, wasn’t so sure it was a good idea to take the fight. Dunkin had managed Bradley through most of his career and helped guide him to a world championship. Besides the obvious emotional conflict, Dunkin knows what Bradley brings to his fights and also knew that Vargas was dealing with an issue with his then-trainer, Roy Jones Jr.

Jones wanted to prepare Vargas for Bradley, but with his other commitments as a fighter, promoter and commentator, Jones couldn’t be with Vargas every day and give him the attention he needed to fully prepare for a fight of this magnitude. So Vargas hired former world champion Erik Morales to train him for Bradley.

“I was hoping Jessie would get a bigger fight and get more money,” Dunkin said of Vargas, who will make $600,000 tonight. “But Jessie came to me and said, ‘Cameron, let’s get it done.’ He really wanted this fight, so here we are.

“I’m thrilled with what Erik has done with Jessie. They really hit it off, and Jessie is coming into the fight with more confidence than I’ve ever seen.”

Vargas said: “Everyone talks about Bradley’s experience. People forget I’ve been a professional for eight years, and I’ve fought almost as many fights as Bradley has.

“Erik Morales has come up with a great game plan. All I have to do is listen to him and follow it, and I will be victorious.”

Bradley, who will make $1.5 million, said after the weigh-in he’s not buying Vargas’ bravado.

“He’s got to prove it to me that he’s a good fighter,” Bradley said. “You’ve seen his body. You’ve seen my body. We all know who’s stronger — me.”

Vargas, a 4-1 underdog, said he knows what tonight means for his career and is ready to take the next big step.

“I’ve worked very hard for this opportunity, and it’s up to me to take advantage of it,” Vargas said.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.