By Ricardo Salazar

After losing his IBF super featherweight title to Rances Barthelemy in July 2014, Algenis Mendez knew there would not be a fast track to another opportunity to redeem himself. He would have to earn it the hard way.

Consequently, on October 6, Mendez had no other option than to take on the highly avoided Miguel "Titere" Vazquez. In Vazquez, Mendez was also facing a man who has been a fixture in The Ring Magazine’s rankings for more than five years in a row. In fact, only eleven other fighters have been in the magazine's rankings for a longer period of time than the former IBF Lightweight Champion.

The fight had been in the works since Mendez's last bout on Feb. 20, when he easily disposed of Daniel Evangelista in six rounds at Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center. But the fight against Vazquez would be a different story. Not many top fighters willingly raise their hand to fight Vazquez, not just for fear of losing, but also because his style frustrates even the most skillful and experienced lightweights in the sport. The way most critics saw it, this fight was not a wise move for Mendez, who would face Vazquez in front of a pro-Mexican crowd in San Antonio, TX, on "FOX Sports 1's "Toe-To-Toe Tuesdays." He would be the underdog the minute the fight was announced.

What was not revealed going into the fight was that Mendez had suffered a debilitating back injury in late summer.

Frustrated after sitting on the sidelines all summer long waiting for a date and site for the fight against the former world champion, Mendez took a trip to Ohio to concentrate on strength and conditioning. While it is still unknown how the injury occurred, a healthy fighter came back barely able to walk two weeks later. The back pain was compounded by another stabbing pain down the back of the fighter’s right leg. An MRI later revealed a badly herniated disk just as training camp for the Vazquez fight was set to begin eight weeks before.

No fighter has looked good fighting Vazquez. Not Canelo Alvarez, not Tim Bradley, not Mickey Bey. Mendez’s willingness to face Vazquez is impressive when you take into account the injury kept him from training. He could not run, move, spar, could not work out at all for the scheduled 10-round fight.

Still, the Vazquez fight was in effect a make or break for Mendez. Fight and win would move him closer to a second world title. Lose and move down to stepping stone/spoiler status. Pull out of the fight and probably be on the shelf indefinitely. He basically had no other option than to take the fight. As a result, Team Mendez had to resort to desperate measures to get their fighter to San Antonio and ask him to do the improbable: beat a fighter who has only lost to top-tier champions – without training – just on talent and willpower alone.

Mendez’s team went back and forth the last nine days before the fight, with their fighter literally limping to the gym just to try to get some shadow box and heavy-bag work as sparring was out of the question. One day it was, "Let’s just pull him out of the fight,” and the next, “He has no option but to fight.” He desperately needed the work, especially after only six rounds of action since the loss to Barthelemy, when he beat Evangelista.

Boxing is an unforgiving business and Mendez’s standing as a top talent had taken a beating even before he lost the IBF crown. A lot of people had given up on him and pulling out of the fight would've been seen as an excuse to avoid a loss to Vazquez.

With the clock ticking, a visit to an orthopedic surgeon in New Jersey, Dr. Warren J. Bleiweiss, was scheduled in an effort to alleviate the pain. Dr. Bleiweiss confirmed the herniated disk but was hopeful an epidural injection would help reduce the inflammation and pain associated with the injury and give Mendez an opportunity to show up on fight night. An injection was applied September 24 and a second one five days before the fight, on October 1. Unable to train, being on weight was another crucial issue as the fight was contracted at 136Lbs., just one pound over the Lightweight limit for a fighter that stands at almost six feet. Enter Dr. Nelson Echavarria, an Orthomolecular Medicine practitioner in NYC who became close with Mendez over the summer. Dr. Echavarria devised a meal and diet plan that would not only help Mendez in making the contracted weight, but also allow him to gain the strength and energy needed to perform at a high level. Mendez, with the help of his father Manolo, stuck to Dr. Echavarria’s strict regimen allowing head trainer Marc Farrait to concentrate on working on the strategy to beat “Titere.”

No one is closer to the fighter than Farrait, who has been working on transforming the defensive-minded, counterpuncher Mendez into a more aggressive, yet intelligent fighter who can use his natural skills and power to win in a more exciting fashion. Without the ability to train and push him to the limit, Farrait was forced to resort to a different method of preparing his charge for the fight: strategy, mindset, and help Mendez recognize the opportunities that would present themselves on fight night.

Farrait is the son of the late trainer Pastor Ralph, a respected NYC-area trainer who guided Giovanni Lorenzo to a pair of world title opportunities. He sounds and trains like his father; he is a no-nonsense type of trainer who brings out the best out of fighters. Although at times it has not been a harmonious partnership, Farrait and Mendez understand the need for each other. For this fight, in particular, there were intense moments when no one really believed all would come out well at the end. In fact, that could very well be the case today. But, unwittingly, together they have forged a bond that could take them all the way to a world championship in 2016. Farrait has managed to reignite the fire Mendez has lacked for much of the last three years, and convinced him that ability alone can only carry a fighter so far.

It would be an understatement to say the road to San Antonio was not a smooth one. When they finally arrived they both knew the result of the fight would dictate the remaining course of their partnership as fighter and trainer. It wouldn’t be an easy fight, that much they knew. But they had studied Vazquez a lot, especially during those days when they couldn’t get to the gym. So they strategized the weeks before the trip and continued once in Texas. For his part, Dr. Echavarria was in contact almost hourly, it seemed. He wanted to make sure Mendez was following his direction so weight would be a non-factor on the day of the weigh-in.

As expected, Mendez would easily tip the scale at 135¾ pounds at the weigh-in on October 5.

In the dressing room on the night of the fight, cutman Todd Harlib wrapped Mendez's hands while Farrait went to Vazquez's dressing room to oversee his wrapping. A while later Mendez began to stretch and warm up with no visible sign of pain; Dr. Bleiweiss's injections had done the job and Mendez would get the chance to silence the critics.

There would be one minor hurdle to overcome, still. When Farrait returned and Mendez was gloving up, a camp member noticed the discrepancy between the gloves assigned to both fighters. Vazquez had 8oz. Everlast gloves on his hands while Mendez had been given 10oz. Grant gloves. The request by Mendez's team to have them switched to the right size was quickly granted and Farrait quickly removed the 10oz. glove Mendez was already wearing and put the correct set on. What seems insignificant can sometimes throw a fighter completely off. The thought of someone giving an opponent an advantage can be magnified on a fighter's mind, especially one who is mentally drained from overcoming so many hurdles just to get there. With everything in place now, all that separated the two fighters was minutes.

No one watching live or on TV could tell Mendez was fighting on pure will and skills. Although he did not feel pain, at some point in the third round his right leg went completely numb. Maintaining his balance and punching without feeling his leg was now an issue. Yet every time he came back to the corner Farrait was quick to remind him he was fighting for his future; there would not be another chance if he lost to Vazquez. There would not be another tomorrow. He needed to will out a victory and show what he was made of. For his part Vazquez, true to form, made it an ugly fight. He consistently pestered Mendez from unconventional angles whenever he pressed the action. The fight was closely contested over ten rounds with Mendez landing the most telling and effective blows – even while economizing on his movement. He would close out the fight with perhaps his most impressive round in the 10th, repeatedly landing flush shots to Vazquez's head to seal the victory. It was a close fight according to judge Rick Crocker (95-94), but not to judges Wilfredo Esperon (97-92) and Ellis Johnson (99-90), all in favor of Mendez.

After the fight Mendez realized he had learned a lot about himself. He now understands what he is capable of.

He also realizes he's in a great position after toughing one out against a formidable foe.

With the win he moved up in the rankings, to No. 6 in the WBC and No. 7 in the IBF. Mendez is now also recognized as the No. 4 Lightweight in the world by the USA Today Sports boxing rankings (behind Dejan Zlaticanin, Jorge Linares, and Yuriorkis Gamboa) and No. 9 by The Ring Magazine. The future now looks bright again for the once "Can't-miss" former Olympian from the Dominican Republic.

Mendez’s team is now working on his next fight, possibly at the end of February. A shot at the winner of the Barthelemy – Shafikov IBF title clash, scheduled for December 18, could be next, but there is also the possibility of fighting Jorge Linares for the WBC crown.

For a fighter whose future seemed uncertain just eight weeks ago, he now looks forward to fulfilling a promise he made to himself long ago: to become the best and most successful boxer ever to come out of the Dominican Republic. And he knows it doesn’t end at just winning another world title.