Fighting at 135 pounds was only supposed to be a temporary thing. Chris Colbert wanted to prove that his loss to Hector Luis Garcia was nothing more than a fluky night, something that would never happen again. 

Colbert ditched the super featherweight division and opted to take on Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela in his lightweight debut. Things weren’t completely smooth, but Colbert eked out the win. But, considering how close their first matchup was, the two decided to do it again. 

Without question, Colbert is sanguine that history will repeat itself. Meaning, he’ll bag another win over Valenzuela next weekend at The Armory in Minnesota. 

Ostensibly, Colbert, who previously stated that his time at 135 pounds was just a one-off, changed his mind. Now, he’s attempting to settle in. 

Coach Sosa, Colbert’s head trainer, likes what he sees from his young fighter. Although he isn’t overlooking Valenzuela, he isn’t unnerved over their upcoming showdown. If his thoughts become a reality and Colbert cruises to the finishing line, they’ll have a ton of options at their disposal. 

By and large, Colbert (17-1, 6 KOs) has been intrinsically linked to Frank Martin. However, while they aren’t eschewing a showdown with the highly ranked contender, Sosa recently revealed that if Isaac Cruz needed a dance partner, they would be willing to make things happen. 

Cruz, of course, is fixated on Gervonta Davis. The Mexican native has picked up three straight wins since their first encounter. Davis, nevertheless, wants Cruz to move on. 

From a distance, Sosa has watched Cruz, not because he’s anticipating a matchup between him and Colbert but mainly due to his recent popularity surge. 

Admittedly, Cruz has shown over the past two years that the superlatives used to describe him aren’t a fallacy. His aggression and knockout power are noteworthy. However, against Colbert, his propensity for putting on that relentless pressure would be used against him. 

“Isaac is strong, powerful, but everything he throws is wide,” explained Sosa to BoxingScene.com. “Chris would see mostly all of it. He’ll roll, comeback touch him, roll, comeback touch him. I think Chris would outpoint him.”