Phenom Demetrius Andrade to make Las Vegas debut

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011 | 1:55 p.m.

With an unblemished record and plenty of hype, former Olympian Demetrius Andrade will make his boxing debut Friday in Las Vegas.

Andrade, 22, will take Alberto Herrera in an eight-round junior middleweight bout at the Cox Pavilion as part of ESPN’s “Friday Night Fights.”

Las Vegas is a stage several fighters eye to compete on. For Andrade, Friday will likely be the first of many bouts in the fighting capital of the world.

“I know (Vegas) is where all the big fights are,” Andrade said. “I’m going to make my mark and let everyone know I belong here.”

He has a professional record of 11-0 with eight knockouts in showing the potential several consider is unlimited. He’s a former world amateur champion, member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, and two-time National Golden Gloves and U.S. National Champion.

The southpaw from Providence, R.I., is already duplicating the success on the professional ranks. His dad and trainer, Paul Andrade, has calculated much of his son’s rise in the sport.

“I would always look ahead (in his career) when training him,” Paul Andrade said. “The thing most amateurs don’t work on that pros really need is a body shot. I started working on the body shot with him when he was 16, so when the time would come, he would know what to do with it.”

So far, so good.

In his most recent fight in the middle of September, Demetrius Andrade posted a second round knockout of David Saunders. Even though it was Saunders’ eighth straight defeat, Andrade’s superior skills were obvious. His power was displayed in a knockout that kept Saunders on a canvas for minutes after the fight was called.

“He’s not a one-dimensional fighter,” the elder Andrade said. “He’s multi-dimensional. He knows how to fight inside-out, left-handed and right-handed, from the right side and left, just every angle there is.

“By knowing all of those styles, every fight he gets in, the other fighter will be in trouble.”

Herrera (7-0-1, 5 KO’s) will be Andrade’s toughest competition to date.

That, however, doesn’t bother Andrade. Like everyone else he has faced, he plans to overpower Herrera.

“If I keep to my plan, nobody can beat me,” Andrade said. “I know (Herrera) is 7-0 with a couple of knockouts. That will be 7-1 on Friday night.”