In a division filled with incredibly talented fighters, Chris Colbert emerged as one of the bright young stars at 130 pounds. While he only had a handful of names to his ledger, the loquacious Brooklyn native either outboxed or out-brawled his opposition.

With a title opportunity awaiting him, Colbert (16-1, 6 KOs) was assured that a bite at the championship apple would be next as long as he took care of business against late replacement, Hector Luis Garcia. Viewed as a gargantuan favorite on the night, Garcia rose and shone, dropping the bombastic trash talker in the seventh before cruising to a unanimous decision victory.

Since his defeat, Colbert sat sequestered on the sidelines as he pondered his next move. Although he hasn't completely given up on his title aspirations at 130 pounds, for now, the 26-year-old will embark on a new adventure.

On March 25th, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, Colbert will officially move up in weight when he takes on Jose Valenzuela at 135 pounds. Fresh off his own upset defeat, a third-round stoppage at the hands of Edwin De Los Santos, Valenzuela (12-1, 8 KOs) has vowed to bounce back at the expense of Colbert. Nevertheless, despite campaigning at a new weight class against a naturally bigger man, there’s virtually nothing that Colbert is worried about heading in.

“He just throws hard shots, that’s about it,” said Colbert to BoxingScene.com. “If I was worried, I would've never went. I would've just went back to 130. I didn't have to take this fight, I chose to.”

Valenzuela, prior to his jaw-dropping defeat, crushed back-to-back foes with relative ease. His ability to remain on the outside, stick and move, and strictly out-wit his foes, hasn't been what he relies on. More than anything, the hard-hitting star, thanks to his pernicious power, has thoroughly enjoyed ending the majority of his fights before the sound of the final bell.

Colbert though, has done his due diligence. Having scoured through countless hours of his upcoming foe's game tape, the soon-to-be 135-pound debutant, outside of Valenzuela’s power, doesn't see many areas of concern.

“I’m not saying he’s trash but that’s his main thing, just throw hard shots.”