Beginning an uncharacteristically quiet comeback on the undercard of the big boxing show in Atlantic City on June 4 will be former middleweight and super middleweight contender Edison “Pantera” Miranda (33-5, 29 KOs).
The monstrously powerful fan favorite will return in a supporting light heavyweight bout before WBC super middleweight champion Carl “Cobra” Froch’s battle against Glen “Road Warrior” Johnson in the Super Six World Boxing Classic Semifinal at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City on Saturday, June 4, and televised live on SHOWTIME Championship Boxing starting at 9 PM ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).
Miranda’s manager, Steve Benbasat, says the world should expect a whole new Edison Miranda that night. “He’s a beast right now — looking unbelievable and extremely strong. He’s got a new trainer and a new attitude. He’s been blasting people in the gym. He’ll be better than ever because he realizes the dumb mistakes he’s made in the past.”
Miranda has joined forces with South Florida-based trainer Noel Carbajal and, according to Benbasat, things are going very well. “They’ve really hit it off. Not only is he getting him in shape, but Noel is teaching him things no one has ever taught him before.”
After suffering a loss in April 2010 to Lucian Bute in a challenge for the IBF Super Middleweight Championship, Miranda returned to his native Colombia for a few months. “Then he came back here and started training hard,” continues Benbasat. “We could have gotten him another fight right away, but we wanted to cultivate some of the new things he’s been learning in the gym, such as his new defense and his new style.”
For Team Miranda, the plan will be to have this next fight off-TV (an eight-round tussle with capable Pittsburgh spoiler Rayco “War” Saunders) and solidify all the improvements in style and the seven-pound jump in weight class, then take a televised fight to show the world the new Miranda. “Then we’ll go for the gusto. Whoever is big at 175 lbs. at the time. Maybe Jean Pascal or Tavoris Cloud. Whoever thinks they can get a win against a recognizable name. We’re going to go in there and steal it.”
The biggest obstacle, says Benbasat, is Miranda’s habit of looking fantastic until it really matters the most. “He’s only lost to the best of the best. They’re all champions: Bute, Ward, Abraham and Pavlik. Those names speak for themselves. He beat the hell out of everyone else he fought. It was not even close. But he stepped up to the next level and fell apart. We believe we’ve worked that out of him now. He was just over-thinking and not using his instincts.”
The Pantera, Edison Miranda, is creeping up slowly on the world’s light heavyweight champions. With a new outlook and improvements in his all-around game, he plans on quietly making his way to within striking distance of a title belt and then lashing out with his amazing power and precision.
That’s how big cats always hunt.
