Brandon Rios favors Peterson over Khan again, would love to meet Marquez in July

Earlier today, news broke that IBF/WBA junior welterweight champion Lamont Peterson had opted for a rematch with former champion Amir Khan, who he defeated this past December in an excellent bout and one of the year's more telling upsets.

Peterson-Khan II will be going down at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 19th and it was surprising for some to see the Washington, D.C. native opt for the rematch, as he also had been eyeing a lucrative two-fight deal from Top Rank that included a July 14th clash with Mexico City stalwart Juan Manuel Marquez.

View slideshow: Brandon Rios trains in Oxnard, California in late January, 2012

<--- Slideshow: Brandon Rios trains in Oxnard, California as rumors of a Gamboa clash begin to swirl

The buzz on the second Peterson-Khan fight is very high and upon hearing the news I caught up with one man who will certainly have his eye on the match, former WBA lightweight champion Brandon ‘Bam Bam’ Rios.

“I think Peterson’s going to beat him again,” Rios stated. “Because I think it’s going to be a little bit different this time, because the first time he did what he did and it worked out very well. I think he’s going to pursue that again and maybe be more effective.”

Of course there was another reason for getting Rios on the phone outside of his opinion of the second Khan-Peterson melee.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, knowing fully well that Marquez is now without a dance partner for his proposed July 14th return to Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas, has made it clear that he still plans on placing Marquez on that date against somebody else.

Rios is presently rumored to be facing off with Cuban marvel Yuriorkis Gamboa on April 14th at the Mandalay Bay yet he couldn’t hide his enthusiasm towards facing Marquez afterwards.

“I would love a fight like that,” Rios said bluntly. “I would love to fight that guy. If they do Gamboa, whatever happens, I would love that fight. I’ll leave that up to my manager; I let him take care of all the business like that and everything. If that’s the best move we’ll do it but I would love to fight somebody like Juan Manuel Marquez.”

Marquez pumped new life into his career this past November with a spirited performance against Manny Pacquiao in a trilogy bout that again left the crowd in disagreement as to who the winner was. And while Marquez would end up losing a split-decision, he was very effective with his counter-punching throughout the bout and is still a threat at 38 years old.

Rios too recognizes the danger is such a matchup.

“He’s very smart, very talented, and when he throws his punches he throws to make sure he lands; he’s very accurate,” Rios continued. “A fight like that, you just got to watch out, always stay on your toes, and be ready for whatever he brings because Marquez is going to come and he’s going to come to win.”

But first things first, as Rios doesn’t want to look ahead of himself. The unbeaten Gamboa is an enigma all his own and Rios knows he can’t cut any corners with that assignment.

Rios lost his WBA title on the scales this past December when he came in .6 pounds overweight for his bout with John Murray and is looking to make sure the same thing doesn’t happen again.

“Right now training is great,” Rios said, speaking on his camp in Oxnard, California. “It couldn’t be any better. The strength and conditioning, the nutritionist, all that stuff is working out very well. Weight is coming off perfect right now. I feel strong and it feels great.”

Chavez Jr.-Rubio / Donaire-Vazquez Jr. BONUS SLIDESHOWS

Donaire drops and defeats Vazquez, Chavez Jr. overcomes Rubio - Candid shots from ringside of Donaire and Chavez's victories plus bonus shots of Shane Mosley, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., and others

Massive Chavez Jr.-Rubio / Donaire-Vazquez Weigh-in Gallery - A closer look at all four HBO stars weighing in, behind the scenes shots and cameos by Freddie Roach, Bob Arum, Larry Merchant, and several others

Tensions arise at final Donaire-Vazquez presser - See images of Nonito Donaire and Wilfredo Vazquez going face to face plus bonus shots of Freddie Roach, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., Bob Arum, Marco Antonio Rubio and others

Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. arrivies in Texas, eyes upset - The Puerto Rican is in town and ready to pull off the upset over Nonito Donaire this weekend

Donaire and Vazquez Jr. open media work out - Images of Donaire and Vazquez working out amidst drama surfacing from their recent Twitter war of words

A closer look at 'The Filipino Flash' - Behind the scenes with Nonito Donaire in Las Vegas, in the ring scoring his victories, and in training camp

Additional photos of Wilfredo Vazquez - Images of WV2 training in Puerto Rico, his bout with Jorge Arce, behind the scenes, and more

RELATED SLIDESHOWS

Comparing Nonito Donaire and Guillermo Rigondeaux -A look inside the recent camps and fights for Rigondeaux and Donaire; live from the Vegas gyms and ringisde for the Narvaez and Ramos bouts

Brandon Rios' intense training and call out of Gamboa -Former WBA lightwegiht champion Brnadon Rios sparred in Oxnard, California and had some choice words for Yuriorkis Gamboa

Sergio Martinez training, waiting for a super fight -Lineal middleweight champion Sergio Martinez trains in Oxnard, California as he eyes a March 17 date with Matthew Macklin

Kelly Pavlik training with Robert Garcia - A look inside the Oxnard Boxing Academy as former champ Kelly Pavlik begins working with his new trainer Robert Garcia

Andre Berto training like a beast despite knocks from Ortiz - Andre Berto trains in Van Nuys, California amidst criticism from his February 11th rival Victor Ortiz

Mercito Gesta trains in Ceba plus bonus shots - Images of lightweight star Mercito Gesta training in Cebu in the Philippines plus bonus

Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. ripped for Donaire - Images of Puerto Rico's former champ as he is cut and focused for his Feb. 4th duel with Nonito Donaire, plus bonus images from Donaire's Vegas camp

Rigondeaux stops Ramos; Mayweather, Julaton, Ward attend - Images from Guillermo Rigondeaux's 6th round knockout over Rico Ramos plus bonus shots of Mayweather, Ana Julaton, and others ringside

Mayweather Jr. calls out Manny Pacquiao - Images from the Mayweather Boxing Club as Floyd Jr. hosts the media and calls for a May 5th date with Manny Pacquiao

Photo journalist Chris Robinson - Behind the scenes in Las Vegas with the Mayweathers, Pacquiao, Donaire, Cotto, Marcos Maidana, Amir Khan, Zab Judah, Brandon Rios and several other stars

Guillermo Rigondeaux preps for Ramos - Candid shots of the Cuban star working out days after hitting Vegas and eyeing his Friday night duel with WBA champ Rico Ramos

Ringside with the Tecate Girls - Visit the slideshow for a look at the Tecate Girls on the scene in Las Vegas, entertaining at the fights, and in personal photo shoots

Intense sparring with Nonito Donaire - Go inside the camp of the 'Filipino Flash' as he goes heads up with Russian featherweight prospect Evgeny Gradovich at the Top Rank Gym in Vegas

Rico Ramos returns fire to Rigondeaux - Catch up with WBA junior feather champ Rico Ramos as he trains at the Mayweather Boxing Club for his bout with Rigondeaux

Nonito Donaire's first day of camp in Vegas - Take a look at Donaire's first day of camp in Las Vegas as he starts off sparring and dives right in

Chris Robinson can be reached at Trimond@aol.com and www.Twitter.com/CRHarmony