Mario Barrios Has Eyes on the Best as Welterweight Landscape Changes

With one eye nearly shut, Mario Barrios survived a tough test and retained a secondary welterweight title on Saturday in his first defense.

Barrios defeated Fabian Maidana, the younger brother of Marcos Maidana, on the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez-Jaime Munguia bill at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. 

The three judges scored the fight the same, 116-111.

After the win, Barrios (29-2, 18 KOs), 28, may look around the division and see that welterweight is beginning to take a new shape. The long-time rulers of the division Terence Crawford (still a champion for now at 147 pounds) and Errol Spence seem to have departed the division. Crawford faces Israil Madrimov for the WBA junior middleweight title on August 3 in L.A, with Spence already citing plans to move up.

 Barrios’ fight against Maidana (22-3, 16 KOs), 31, proved to be a tough one, and he needed to show his resiliency. A counterpunch from Maidana caused his eye to swell, and that was after Barrios sent Maidana crashing to the canvas in the third.

“The eye was a little bit of a factor, I had to pick my shots,” said Barrios. “Once my eye started swelling up it was hard to find my range, but we stuck to the fundamentals, tried to find openings and came out with the victory.”

Barrios knew how tough Maidana was leading into the fight and had expected a difficult evening.

“I knew he came in for a hard fight, he was a warrior like I thought he was,” Barrios said. “These types of fights are the ones that are the hardest. It was a great fight.”

What does Barrios want next? It is simple – he wants to face the best in his division and is making his intention clear.

“I want to fight the best,” Barrios said. “I’m ready for anybody. I’m chasing world titles.”