Luis Coria has shared the ring with some of the best in the sport.

Whether in an actual fight or in the gym, Coria has more than held his own.

Coria believes his experience and skill set will be the deciding factor tonight as he faces once-beaten Omar Salcido Gamez at the Red Owl Boxing Arena in Houston, Texas. The eight-round lightweight bout will headline a Thurgood Marshall Promotions card that will stream live on DAZN (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT).

The 25-year-old Coria, who resides in Perris, California, became well-known to boxing fans for fighting on Top Rank cards in 2020 and 2021. Coria was defeated by majority decision against Adam Lopez and then lost a close decision to former world title challenger Robson Conceicao, but he managed to drop Conceicao during the fight.

In May 2021, Coria dropped Enrique Vivas twice en route to losing a close decision.

Luis Coria – Photo by Red Owl Boxing

Coria has since won his last three fights. In his last bout on October 7, he won by technical decision against Jesus Ramon Perez and in his previous fight against Herbert Acevedo on August 19 was able to grind out a hard-fought unanimous decision victory.

Whether it was the three-fight stretch fighting on Top Rank cards or in recent fights, Coria worked on his skill set and received advice from trainer Robert Garcia and others at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy in Riverside, California.

“I’ve been back in the gym right after each one of my last fights,” Coria told The Ring Wednesday night. “Working on my craft and trying to learn as much as I can from Robert and the rest of my team, including ‘Big G’ (longtime trainer Eduardo Garcia), who is always giving me advice and pushing me.”

Coria will now face Salcido (17-1, 12 KOs), who is originally from Hermosillo, Mexico, and now resides in Lakeside, California. Salcido suffered his first defeat in his last bout on October 4, losing by decision to Jose Nunez in a clash of unbeaten lightweight prospects.

Between the two, and on paper, Coria has faced the far-better opposition, which he believes will give him an edge tonight.

“I really think my experience in tougher fights will help me in the later rounds,” said Coria, who made his pro debut in September 2016 on a Golden Boy Promotions card.

“I have fought the better opposition, no doubt, including (an) Olympic Gold medalist (in Conceicao), who has (challenged) for the world title three times. And also, (I fought) ‘Blunose’ Lopez, who many thought was beating (Oscar) Valdez at the time of the stoppage in their first fight.”

Coria has trained for the last several years at Robert Garcia’s gym. Garcia also trains WBO world flyweight titleholder Jesse Rodriguez, former world unified junior welterweight titleholder Jose Ramirez, and unbeaten lightweight contender Raymond Muratalla.

According to Coria, having been trained by Garcia and having sparred some of the best fighters in the world will give him a further advantage against Salcido. An impressive victory over Salcido would carry momentum into 2024, where bigger fights on more high-profile platforms await.

“Everyone knows that the sparring that goes down at (the) Robert Garcia Boxing Academy is world-class work with all the guys that train there,” said Coria. “I get to spar the likes of Muratalla, (unbeaten junior welterweight) Lindolfo Delgado, and (lightweight Jose) ‘Rayo’ Valenzuela, and a lot of the young and up and coming fighters.

“Having Robert as my trainer and me being part of the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy team lets me know that I am at the level that can compete with any fighter, as you have to be able to fight in order to belong in that gym.

“A win would open doors to be able to land a big fight in the near future.”

Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected]

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