Mark Barriga urged by analyst to continue fighting amid thoughts of retirement

Veteran boxing analyst Atty. Ed Tolentino believes Mark Barriga should continue his professional boxing career even after he fell short in two world title attempts.

Barriga lost via unanimous decision against WBO world light flyweight champion Jonathan Gonzalez this past weekend. After the fight, he revealed that he was offered by the WBO to fight for a world title again if he moves down to 105 pounds but is now contemplating retirement.

“His attention is divided. In boxing, you need to have total commitment. How can you have the passion when you are attending to other things. I can understand his sentiment though because he has been boxing for a long time,” Tolentino told Sparring Sessions LIVE.

The 29-year-old former Olympian, who holds a professional record of 11-2 with 2 knockouts, also fought for the vacant IBF world minimumweight title in 2018 but lost via split decision to Carlos Licona.

Yet despite the setbacks, Tolentino believes Barriga is still a champion in the making.

“We want him to fight against him because we saw his performances in his last two world title fights. He did well. If can commit he can advance his career but it depends on his motivation level. In the end, when the bell rings it is just him inside the ring,” Tolentino stressed.

“What is your mindset? Do you still want it? Because if he cannot commit then he might get hurt. He has a lot of things to think about. I believe he has time. Time is still on his side but he cannot be inactive. The sun is still shining he can still make hay.”

—JMB, GMA News