MANILA, Philippines - Brian Viloria was simply overwhelmed by the size of The Venetian Macau, a sprawling luxury hotel and casino resort and venue of his fight this coming Saturday.
Viloria arrived in Macau last Monday, and had been to the gym more than a couple of times as he tapers down for his title defense against Mexican Juan Francisco Estrada.
The 5-foot-4 Filipino said he can’t believe the size of The Venetian, reputedly the largest casino in the world with its 3,400 slot machines and 800 gaming tables in a space of 51,000 sqm.
It’s a $2.4 billion, 40-storey structure listed as the sixth largest building in the world by floor area. It has a 15,000-seat arena for entertainment and sports events.
“It takes over six hours to walk through the mall here. It’s that huge!†said the 32-year-old Viloria, holder of the WBO and WBA flyweight crowns, in his Twitter account.
On Saturday, he hopes to put on a show as big as The Venetian.
“I’ve done my homework and I know how to pull off a win,†the small wonder from the Philippines told www.philboxing.com.
There’s no doubt Viloria will because he’s on a rampage, winning all his last six fights, the last three via knockouts over rated foes like Giovanni Segura, Omar Nino Romero and Hernan “Tyson†Marquez.
Viloria is by all means the favorite in this fight. He has a ring record of 32 wins, 3 losses and a draw with 19 KOs while Francisco stands at 22-2-0 with 18 KOs.
Estrada, 10 years younger at 22, is no pushover, but is coming off a 12-round loss to Roman Gonzales for the WBO light-flyweight title last Nov. 17 at the Sports Arena in California.
On the same night, Viloria knocked out Marquez in the 10th round, and looked unbeatable in the 112-lb division.
Viloria’s manager, Gary Gittelsohn, told www.philboxing.com that all’s set for the fight.
Viloria is just three pounds over the limit with still four days to the official weigh-in on Friday. Gittelsohn said there’s no problem with the weight.
He added that Viloria is eating what he wants, and is very comfortable, unlike when he was fighting in the 108-lb class where he has to drain himself.
Viloria said he can’t wait for the fight.