CRISTOBAL ARREOLA “NO PAIN, NO GAIN”
Riverside, CA –Seldom, if ever, has the saying, “No Pain, No Gain” seemed so mild compared to what Heavyweight warrior Cristobal Arreola endured last Friday at Citizens Business Bank Arena in front of an ESPN “Friday Night Fights” audience in his 12-round unanimous decision victory over Manuel Quezada for the WBC Mexican National Heavyweight Championship. The good news is that Arreola’s left hand was only fractured in the middle of the 2nd round. A splint was put in place today by Dr. Theodore Gregorius with a cast to be applied on Thursday once the swelling subsides.
Prognosis: unable to use his left hand for 4 to 6 weeks.
Amazingly, Arreola continued throwing left-handed punches throughout the bout without regard to his injury or pain.
Now the bad news is that in the 9th round Arreola sustained what he thought was a broken right hand, but today was informed he only tore a tendon; a far worse injury then a fracture. Thursday he will learn the date of the surgery.
Prognosis: unable to use his left hand for 10 to 12 weeks.
Amazingly, Arreola continued fighting without injury free hands!
Recalls Arreola, “In the 2nd round I hit Quezada on the forehead and felt a shooting pain in my left hand immediately. Every time I hit him I could feel a constant throbbing pain. Then in the 9th round, I threw a right hand, and I knew right then that it was gone. The pain was so intense in both hands I remember thinking I had to be very cautious in keeping my hands up and only throwing effective punches since I was limited in throwing as many as I wanted, especially in the 10th through 12th rounds.”
“I’ve heard of one-handed fighters, but never have I heard (or seen) a fighter with no hands (at least healthy) at his disposal,” said Dan Goossen, Arreola’s promoter. “Arreola took No Pain, No Gain to the Extreme last Friday.”
That’s what fighters do.
