Nicholas Walters’ continues his return from his near seven-year vanishing act from boxing this Wednesday when he collides with Joseph Adorno on ProBox TV’s Wednesday Night Fights in Plant City, Florida.
The Jamaican disappeared from the sport after retiring on his stool against Vasiliy Lomachenko for the WBO super featherweight world title in November 2016.
“Honestly I took a break from boxing because I’ve never been away from the sport since I started boxing at eight years old,” Walters said, in an exclusive interview for boxingscene.com. “I took some time off and upon my return I had a couple of injuries. I did plan to come back, but I didn’t plan for it to take so long. It has taken me some time to get back to the big stage, but it’s okay.
“The thing is that I knew that preparation for the Lomachenko fight wasn’t great, we were more concentrated on making weight because we didn’t have a fight for a year and a half, nearly two years. We had a lot of weight to burn down. Everyone was focused on the weight ahead of details and defense. You all saw what happened, but I’ve got over it. The only reason I pulled out of boxing is because I needed some time with the family, I needed some time for myself. It has been nice to be with the family 24/7. Boring is a secluded sport, it takes you away from the family and you have to migrate to other places that keep you away from your family. I was always okay when I was out of boxing because I was always with the wife and kids. It has taken some time to get back because of the two injuries, but sometimes you just need a bit of time. That is all in the past and we are looking forward to getting back and I’m looking forward.”
Originally from Montego Bay, Jamaica, Walters has resided in Panama for much of his professional life.
“The main reason that I came back was because I was back home working in the gym with the younger guys and they were like, ‘Why don’t you come back and fight’ as I would help them with sparring all the time,” Walters remembered. “I’ve helped out a lot of the guys who have had big title fights coming up and they were like, ‘Yo, you still have a lot to give to the sport.’ The coaches and the guys at the gym were the guys who really motivated me to get back.
“A lot of other people wanted me to continue when I stopped because I was the No. 1 ranked fighter in all the governing bodies, the WBC, the WBA, all of them! They were like, ‘This is not the time to stop’ but whatever, I wanted to take the break. I took the time off and took it easy.”
Walters 28-1-1 (22 KOs) gained notoriety when demolishing Filipino superstar Nontio Donaire in a WBA featherweight title defense nearly 10 years ago. HBO Commentator Max Kellerman said at the time; “The King is dead, long live the King.” Walters was one of boxing’s hottest properties but lost his title on the scales ahead of a wide points victory over Miguel Marriaga eight months later. A draw with Jason Sosa followed ahead of his first career defeat to Lomachenko in Las Vegas.
The 38-year-old would quietly re-emerge in 2023 with two low key non-televised bouts in Colombia against little-known opposition. On Wednesday, Walters comes in as the opponent to face 24-year-old American lightweight Adorno (18-3-2, 15 KOs).
“We have been working for some time now for this fight,” Walters explained. “I feel great. My body is okay and my mind is ready mentally. I’m expecting to go there on the 27th and put on a great performance. If you want to be great, you need to take tough fights. He’s a good fighter, so we take on a good fighter to show the world we still have it. I had two good eight-round fights when I came back. The first went the distance, and in the second fight I stopped the guy in the second round. This fight coming up is the true get back fight, a true test. I’m definitely looking forward to it, I want to give the fans a really good show.
“I’ve been working out of Las Vegas for this fight with a good coach in Jaime Moreno. We’ve had a good training camp, we are definitely focused and ready to do what we do best. It is going to be a great fight. We started the team from new for this fight, we are building a team and it’s fresh. I’ve usually trained out of Panama but this is the first time that we train out of Vegas. I live in Panama, my family is from Panama, so it felt good to come out to Vegas. We have been going to the Top Rank gym and lots of other gyms. I’ve had some sparring with Rolly Romero, I’ve had sparring with Kid Kansas [Alan Garcia], I’ve had sparring with Emiliano Moreno, I’ve had a lot of good sparring.”
Walters achieved world glory at 126 pounds making three defenses of his WBA belt, but he would fall short in becoming a two-weight world champion against Lomachenko.
“I’ve had a chat with my team and I think we are going to balance it between 130 and 135 pounds,” Walters added. “I have no problem making 135. Our team is working perfectly. As I said, I’ve been sparring with world champions and good active fighters, I’m looking good and more than holding my own on there. That’s why we have taken on a good opponent, you need to come down to see the work. We still have it and we want to show it.”
