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Australian super featherweight Will Tomlinson will aim to further his assault on the US market when he faces undefeated Mexican Francisco Vargas in Texas on Thursday.
A former IBO world champion, Tomlinson will take on Vargas for the WBO International strap and the NABF belt.
A tough customer who loves a bloody scrap, the 28-year-old has just the solitary loss on his 25-fight career.
Tomlinson has been based in the US for over a year after signing with Golden Boy. He has been training in Los Angeles for this fight in San Antonio.
“Everything is going well,” Tomlinson told The Roar.
“I am on track and training really hard leaving no stone unturned for what is by far the biggest fight of my career.
“The great thing about LA is that you get so many options with sparring partners, but my last couple of hit outs have been with great young prospects Pete Duran and Jesse Roman.”
Vargas has had 21 wins and one draw from his 22 professional fights and is two years older than his opponent. He has a slight advantage in height and reach, while Tomlinson has experience, having fought a number of Mexican brawlers in the past.
“I know Vargas is a very fit, hungry, aggressive pressure fighter. He has a strong will to win and that is going to make for a great fight come March 12th,” Tomlinson said.
“I think he is a great fighter and he is going to present a great challenge for me however, I believe I will rise to the occasion and do what I have to do to get the win.
“I think I can beat him in a number of different ways. I can beat him on the inside, I can beat him on the outside and on the night, I will just adapt to what I feel is working for me and execute it.”
Tomlinson’s career has been on the rise after featuring on a number of Danny Green undercards in Australia over the past six years. He has picked up a stack of belts, from the Aussie super featherweight title to the IBO Intercontinental strap and regional WBO titles.
In 2012 the Melburnian claimed the IBO world title with a points win over Mexican Alan Herrera. He defeated that belt three times in Australia, establishing his name Down Under, before his debut in the US against Jerry Belmontes. In the bright lights of Las Vegas Tomlinson came unstuck, posting the first loss of his professional career. But he has bounced back with victories over Alberto Cupido in Mexico and Miguel Zamuido in San Diego last year.
“The biggest thing I learnt with the Belmontes fight was that in boxing you are only as good as your last performance and that the big opportunities like that don’t come around very often,” Tomlinson told The Roar.
“I have learnt that when you are given these big fights you have to grab them with both hands, don’t let go and capitalise on the moment.”
If Tomlinson can beat Vargas, a world title shot at the WBO or WBC world title could materialise. But first the Aussie has to get past Vargas, someone who beat Jerry Belmontes – the only fighter to have beaten Tomlinson – and also took down former world champ Juan Manuel Lopez.
This is a make-or-break fight. Tomlinson isn’t looking past Vargas, but knows a dream shot against Tokishi Miora, Japan’s WBC belt holder, isn’t far away.
Australian boxing has a tough year with a number of local fighters securing title shots overseas but failing to win a belt. Tomlinson is out to buck that trend.
“I can only say that I am going to give my best efforts to ensure Australian boxing remains relevant on the world boxing scene and obviously I would love to fight for a world title. But again I am just focusing on the fight in front of me at this point.”
Follow John Davidson on Twitter @johnnyddavidson
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