Before Regis Prograis walked on stage to be weighed in on Friday afternoon one of his associates stole the limelight by beating him there while wearing an expensive, customised Rougarou body suit.
Followers of Prograis will recognise “Rougarou” as his nickname, but in this context more relevant is that the Rougarou is a symbol of Prograis’ appreciation of Cajun folklore and, more specifically, the tales of the beast said to have the body of a man and the head of a wolf or dog while haunting Louisiana’s vast wetlands looking for misbehaving children.
Inside the Rougarou body suit, bringing it to life, was one “Thomas”, who made it upon Prograis’ request, for – according to those close to Prograis – in excess of $40,000. The same Thomas came to Prograis’ attention because he had designed the Problem Bot (which ProBox TV had never previously heard of) associated with the lamentable Jake Paul. A quick search on Google suggests that the Thomas in question is Thomas DePetrillo of Extreme Costumes. That it was the most unexpected complement to a weigh-in seen by ProBox TV since Frank Maloney hired dwarves to attend one ahead of a David Price fight when Price was the world’s Next Heavyweight Champion is perhaps irrelevant. Anytime one of the Pauls’ influence can be detected in boxing circles is of considerably greater concern.
It transpires that the 34-year-old Prograis and four of his closest friends refer to themselves as “The Wolf Pack”, in recognition of a friendship group that has existed for 26 years and counting. Splash, Buddy, Dank and Primo are the other four; all were also present when their friend weighed-in.
One who was not present, and who is also not expected by Matchroom to be present come fight night, is the great Miguel Cotto, Danielito Zorrilla’s promoter. Zorrilla, 29, accepted Saturday’s fight at a month’s notice. That his promoter and fellow Puerto Rican is not in New Orleans to support him – Prograis’, Eddie Hearn, was wearing a New Orleans-branded jumper – is perhaps a reflection of how little he is expected to win.
