Angel Rodriguez has faced adversity outside the ring and was able to overcome it. Which is why he believes that will be a significant advantage moving forward with his boxing career.

At the most low point in his life, one filled with not making the best decisions in his life, Rodriguez found solace in the ring to give him stability in his personal life and a shot at success. 

Rodriguez will face Gabriel Gutierrez tonight at the Derby Room (also known as the Finish Line Sports Grill) in Pomona, California. The eight-round fight will headline a ‘BoxFest 6’ card that will be promoted by MarvNation Promotions (Fite.TV, 9 p.m. ET/ 6 p.m. PT).

The 22-year-old Rodriguez (10-1, 7 knockouts), who resides in nearby Pico Rivera, suffered his first loss in his last bout on January 29, losing to Jose Marrufo by unanimous decision. Rodriguez took some time away from the gym, making a few changes in where and who would train him.

Rodriguez will face a journeyman in Gutierrez (7-13, 5 KOs), who resides in El Paso, Texas and has lost seven of his last nine bouts. Rodriguez is looking at the glass half-full from the fallout of the Marrufo fight and believes there is a silver lining in the long run.

I’m approaching this fight just like I approach any other fight,” Rodriguez told BoxingScene over the phone earlier this week. “I had a little bit of a layoff, six months from my last fight. (I) came back to the gym and trained hard for this fight. (I’m) looking to make a statement in this comeback and show everyone I’m a different fighter. I joined a different camp. I’m really excited. 

“(The loss to Marrufo) was a good fight for me. I think that fight came at the right time for me to make adjustments before getting to a bigger part of my career. I learned so much in that fight. I learned more about boxing because I’ve always been a fighter that likes to bang it out. For me to have been successful, I needed to box. That’s all I had to do.I look back, coming into this training camp, I had to learn how to box (more effectively). That’s what I got from it.”

Even as he displayed aggression and power, having knocked out six of his previous seven opponents, including a knockout win over once-beaten Yamil Acevedo on December 18, Rodriguez did admit there were flaws in his skill-set that was exposed in the loss to Marrufo.

“Sometimes there will be fights where you don’t get the knockout,” said Rodriguez, who is promoted by MarvNation. “There’s some fighters out there that are tough. This guy (Marrufo) was tough. He didn’t stop coming. He was applying pressure. He didn’t give me time to think in there. I was just throwing my hands out there. I’m glad that fight happened. I believe I’m a lot smarter now. My ring IQ is different (now).”

Rodriguez has fought most of his young career at around 135 pounds. There are a lot of fights he could land in a very talent-rich division, including against prospects. 

As he continues fighting, Rodriguez admits it is difficult for him to make weight. There is the option of moving up in weight to the junior welterweight division to accommodate his 5’11” frame. 

“I really feel comfortable at 140 (pounds),” said Rodriguez. “I’ve been fighting at 135 for two years. It’s getting kind of hard to make the weight because I’m getting older. I’m not a kid anymore. It’s getting tougher.”

For this fight, Rodriguez was fortunate enough to spar at the famed Wild Card Gym in nearby Hollywood, which is owned by trainer Freddie Roach. He was able to spar against unbeaten fighters, as well as tough prospects.

Rodriguez saw a lot of benefits and hopes to train there again to receive top sparring, something he said was missing earlier in his young career.

“This last camp, I went to Freddy Roach’s gym to spar some of the guys there, including a fighter from Top Rank,” said Rodriguez. “I sparred with Giovanni Cabrera. It was good sparring. Good work. I was sparring against styles I had never seen before. It really helped me a lot, especially the boxing aspect.

“I’ve sparred against a few world champions, but the sparring has been similar with the Mexican style of sparring. The work I got at Freddie Roach’s gym was beneficial to me for this camp.”

Rodriguez always had boxing in his blood since he was a child. As he entered his adolescent years, he would get into trouble, which led to him getting expelled from school. 

It was a turning point as Rodriguez’s father decided to enroll his son in boxing to keep him away from trouble, gangs, and other bad influences. It was the best decision that was made as Rodriguez has reaped the benefits of boxing. He is positive boxing saved his life. Now he is attempting to help those in the same situation he was in.

“I started boxing at 15 years old. I’ve been wanting to box since I was younger, but my Dad didn’t let me. He would say it’s too dangerous. In high school, I started making some bad decisions that got me kicked out of school. Ever since then, my Dad took me to the gym. I stuck with it. I loved it. I fell in love with it because, when I got in trouble, (boxing) kept me out of trouble. That’s what really made me fall in love with it. It keeps me on my toes. It keeps me disciplined. It keeps me away from people I don’t need to be around. I will always be grateful for boxing.

“I can say boxing saved my life. That’s what we’re looking to do with other kids. We own a gym in Montebello and there’s a bunch of kids that train there. I was able to speak at a high school. We gave the students who were the most troublemakers a free gym membership. It changed their life. I had an impact on their life. That’s something we want to keep doing for the kids.”

As he embarks in the second phase of his pro career, Rodriguez is eager to make the most of any opportunity presented to him. He hopes to make an impact in a new weight class at 140 pounds and prove his worth in the sport.

“I can make a statement in various ways. I can make a statement that I’m a true fighter, not letting anything like that (my first loss) get to me. And honestly, I didn’t take the loss too hard. It was a good fight. I do my best to give everyone a good fight. I did what I could. I’m glad that happened because I learned a lot. I would rather learn now than later in my career. I’m grateful for that fight.”

Francisco A. Salazar has written for BoxingScene since September 2012 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 by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing