WBO Cruiserweight Champion Marco Huck (33-1, 24 KOs) will face the “biggest challenge” of his career on October 22 when he takes on Argentinian giant Rogelio Rossi (17-2-1, 11 KOs) in Ludwigsburg, Germany. Standing tall and unbeaten in his last 17 fights, Rossi is between Huck and a successful eighth defense of his title. “Rossi must be the world’s tallest cruiserweight,” Huck said. “I’ve never fought against an opponent as tall as him. I will have to make adjustments in training. It won’t be easy to hit his head, but I can promise my fans that he will go down, just like everybody else who has tried to take away my title.”
The clash will be Huck’s first fight in Ludwigsburg since beating Ola Afolabi in a hard-fought battle in December 2009, which was his first defense. “I will never forget the support of the fans in Ludwigsburg,” he said. “I had just become world champion and Afolabi gave me a hard fight. But with the help of the crowd, I wore him down. It will be no different this time out.”
Coach Ulli Wegner is full of respect for Rossi. “It will be difficult,” he stated. “Rossi is a southpaw. And he is from Argentina. All Argentinians have a very big heart and great fighting spirit. Marco needs to focus in practice to be in perfect shape. Then he will defend his title.”
While one has to respect that Huck is one of the busiest champions in the sport, always with a fight lined up, one also has to question some of the men he has been in the ring with for his defenses. With Steve Cunningham now promoted by Sauerland, why has there been no progress in securing a Cunningham vs. Huck rematch?
