Boxing fans haven’t heard the names Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin and J’Leon Love in a long while.
These were the boxers predicted to be the future of the game coming out of world-class camps like the Mayweather Boxing Club, yet their respective careers took a downward trajectory due to pivotal moments that derailed their journey.
Both Quillin and Love have only one loss, but the industry treats them like outliers. Quillin is a former middleweight champion and Love was a poster boy for the Mayweather stable early on.
Daniel Jacobs Shocks Peter Quillin with a 1st Round TKO | SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING
Daniel “The Miracle Man” Jacobs comes out firing and stuns the Barclays Center crowd with a TKO victory over Peter Quillin 1:25 minutes into the 1st round of their WBA Middleweight World Championship.
However, these two have fallen by the waysides due to the influx of top-tier talent. As Canelo Alvarez and GGG dominated the middleweight ranks, people forgot about Kid Chocolate. The first round KO he suffered at the hands of Danny Jacobs didn’t help either.
Still, we have arrived at the juncture where both Love and Quillin will be paired together for a chance at redemption, whether real or manufactured.
“I only have one loss. It’s not like the end of the road,” said Love during a media conference call. “Even with Peter Quillin, like it’s one loss to a really good elite fighter. I mean that’s it. So it’s definitely not the end of the road, just what you guys make it to be. But at the end of the day, there’s definitely pressure on anybody to win any fight, whether it’s a mediocre fight or a big fight, it doesn’t matter.”
Quillin’s KO loss to Danny Jacobs in 2015 was shocking. At 1:25 into the first round, the blow virtually erased all the amazing work Quillin had done to get there. He had already won the WBO middleweight title, he had a knockout win over Gabe Rosado, and defeated Winky Wright and Hassan N’Dam. But Jacobs smeared his career with one punch.
One look at Al Haymon’s stable of fighters says the pressure has to be on behind the scenes for any fighter housed within. Between the Charlo brothers and Errol Spence placing Texas squarely on the map, the stakes are high for relevance. Quillin has been in the eye of the Haymon pro forma for years and Haymon always reciprocates with opportunity. This co-main feature and step up to the 168 lb ranks is definitely an attempt at just that.
Kid Chocolate Peter Quillin on J’Leon, Jacobs vs Derevyanchenko & Canelo vs GGG 2
Kid Chocolate Peter Quillin on J’Leon, Jacobs vs Derevyanchenko & Canelo vs GGG 2 https://www.patreon.com/Thaboxingvoice BUY THA BOXING VOICE T-SHIRT HERE http://thaboxingvoice.com/store PLEASE SUPPORT!!! SUBSCRIBE, SHARE & LIKE Please check out our facebook page and hit the like button. https://www.facebook.com/Thaboxingvoiceradio GOOGLE PLUS https://plus.google.com/107960664507143008932/posts?
“I will be ready for a title shot after this fight,” said Quillin during the media call. “If that is what is meant for me, yes I’ll be ready. Being at 160 was very hard to make the weight. I feel very comfortable at 168. I feel like this is my place, and I’m always trying to establish myself. We can never say we’re ready for something, I just got to be well prepared. So that’s how my vision is.”
“Of course down the line maybe in the future maybe me and Danny Jacobs having a rematch, but it cannot be at 160 pounds. I want to campaign at 168 and I’m going to see how I feel at this weight. I’m going to close with progress. I’ve been out of the ring for such a long time.”
Love and Quillin both fought on the same card almost a year ago in September at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas. It was a club style show and a reminder of which athletes are the priority for boxing. At this point in their careers, the lack of pop and sizzle made them filler shows for premium cable broadcasters.
Quillin won and Love fought to a draw, and both are still seeking a piece of boxing’s upper tier financial pie that was promised to them early in their careers.
J’LEON LOVE WARNS PETER QUILLIN “I’M BRINGIN THAT SH*T”; EXPLAINS WHY FIGHT WILL BE GREAT
FightHype.com recently caught up with super middleweight contender J’Leon Love, who talked about his upcoming clash with fellow contender Peter Quillin. You don’t want to miss what he had to say about Quillin, the fight, and much more. Check it out!
“The co-feature, much like the main event, features two well-known fighters that need to win, that are on the comeback trails, that are looking for a shot at a world title, and this is a critical crossroads fight for both of these gentlemen,” said promoter Lou DiBella. “I promoted a number of fights for both of these fighters. I go back with Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin since he was a kid. I promoted J’Leon Love before my friends at Mayweather Promotions, who now promote him.”
This weekend in the shadow of the Andre Berto vs. Devon Alexander main event is a super middleweight co-feature that will hold the promotional career of one of these athletes in the balance.
When the smoke clears, who stands will again be on the radar of relevance. The other will continue to languish in the competitive shadow of their high achieving peers.
