When Shane Mosley ruled the lightweight division from 1997 to 1999, some were brave enough to state that the Pomona native would never lose. He was that good. Yet that opinion never came out of Mosley’s mouth. Instead, he was blunt in stating that he knew someday, someone would have his number. That someone turned out to be Vernon Forrest.

Ten years after Forrest’s first victory over Mosley in 2002, a southpaw from New Orleans named Regis Prograis made his pro debut with a first-round knockout of Carl Almirol. He didn’t share Mosley’s opinion on the inevitability of defeat. And as he won fight after fight and won the WBA junior welterweight title, he was even more confident that every trip to the ring would end with a ‘W.’

“I actually felt I was never gonna lose,” Prograis admits. “I really didn't even think I was going to get beat. I don't train to win; I train for domination from the opening bell. I train to beat up people bad so it's not even going to be close.”

But with rare exception, nothing lasts forever. And last October, Prograis ran into his Vernon Forrest in Scotland’s Josh Taylor, who defeated him via majority decision. It was a close fight, a Fight of the Year candidate, and one many, including Prograis, believe he pulled out.

“I didn't feel like I lost the fight,” he said. “I know it was a close fight, but it shouldn't have been a close fight.”

Take all that away, and it’s still 24-1 as the 31-year-old’s record, not 25-0, but it’s good to hear that the competitive fires are still burning in the chest of Prograis, who makes his return to the ring on April 17 against another former champ in Maurice Hooker. It’s the kind of matchup that comes as no surprise to those who have followed the career of “Rougarou,” as he’s not the “tune-up” or “stay busy bout” kind of fighter.

“I wanted the Josh Taylor rematch immediately, but of course that's not gonna happen - he has mandatories, then he's gonna try and go for the undisputed title with Jose Ramirez,” said Prograis. “They're gonna do that and they're going to be occupied for a while, so the next best possible thing was Maurice Hooker, and that's what's happening. I didn't want no easy fights. I train too hard and training camps are too hard to take any easy fights.”

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These days, training camps and everyday life takes place in Los Angeles, far from any distractions back in his adopted hometown of Houston, and the former 140-pound champ is adjusting well to his new digs in the City of Angels.

“I've been coming here for a while for training camps and I just love the city,” he said. “I couldn't see myself living here forever, but as far as right now, this is where I want to be.”

Prograis talks of running through the mountains of the city and having the beach and the water a stone’s throw away, but for all the beauty around him, this old-school battler is keeping it gritty when it’s time to get his boxing work in. And when you ask him what went wrong against Taylor, he says it may be that desire to whittle this sport down to its bare essence on fight night.

“My main thing is, I stopped boxing,” he said. “I just fought way, way too long. And I always have the fighter's heart where I just love to fight; but sometimes you don't need to fight. I always want to prove how much of a dog I am, but now people know how much of a dog I am, they know what I can do, they know how much of a savage I am, so now I can pick and choose my spots when I need to fight and when I need to box.”

The fans love that savage intensity, though, something Prograis was reminded of when he made the trip to Las Vegas for the recent Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder rematch.

“I was at the Tyson Fury fight and most of the English fans knew me,” he said. “They wanted to take pictures with me and most of them told me they thought I won the fight (with Taylor). So I think it’s just a bump in the road, and people also think it's just a bump in the road and not really a loss. I still got the loss on my record, but I still don't feel like I lost the fight.”

And win or lose, Prograis hasn’t lost any of his love for the sport. Not an ounce.

“I love fighting,” he said. “I love boxing, I love the history of it, I love the sport, I love everything about it and I just want to be the best at it. That's the main thing. I hate losing at anything and I always want to be the best at everything I do. So I take this very, very seriously. For me, it's about improving, and that's what I want to do.”