Xander Zayas expects Damian Sosa to bring the action, while Sosa predicts excitement

Xander Zayas prepares for an aggressive approach to Damian Sosa on Friday evening. Sosa, meanwhile, says there’s more to his game than that.

“I feel like he’s going to come in and be a Mexican warrior. I expect the best Damian Sosa ever. He has prepared for this fight like he has never done before in his life,” Zayas said Wednesday at the final press conference ahead of their fight, which will be on the undercard of Sandy Ryan vs. Mikaela Mayer at Madison Square Garden Theatre. Their fight will air on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+, with coverage starting at 10:30 PM Eastern Time (3:30 AM BST).

‘He comes to fight. He’s going to throw a lot of punches and put a lot of pressure on me. But I’m ready,” Zayas said.

Zayas is a junior middleweight prospect originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and now living in Sunrise, Florida. He signed with Top Rank at the age of 16, turned pro for a while after his 17th birthday and is now, at the age of 22, 19-0 (12 KOs). In June he won a wide decision over Patrick Teixeira.

Sosa, a 27-year-old from Tijuana, Mexico, is 25-2 (12 KOs). He lost a unanimous decision to 31-14-4 Ivan Alvarez in April 2023, but has since won three straight, including a split decision in April over the previously undefeated Marques Valle.

“The fight with Xander had been in the works for a while. It was said to me before, but because of a loss I suffered, this fight was postponed a little bit,” Sosa said. “But now (…) the opportunity presents itself again. And now that I’m training with Robert Garcia, it couldn’t have happened at a better time in my career.”

The support of trainers like Garcia has helped Sosa become a more versatile fighter, he said.

“I’m a Mexican fighter and I think that’s how I started my career: a fighter who throws a lot of punches. But thank God I had the opportunity to work with very good trainers who helped me get better,” Sosa said.

“Xander knows how to adapt. I also know how to adapt, and I think that will make this fight very exciting. I’m still making progress and I’m still trying to improve my fitness, my technique and my strategy. Boxing isn’t just a sport where you go out there and throw punches, and that’s something I’ve gradually come to understand.”

David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2 And @UnitedBoxingPod. He is co-host of the United Boxing Podcast. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing”, is one