"Fabian Maidana Seeks to Forge His Own Path in Boxing Spotlight

Fabian Maidana is gearing up to step out from his brother's shadow as he prepares to face Mario Barrios on Saturday. The welterweight bout will take place on the undercard of the highly anticipated undisputed super-middleweight title fight between Saul Alvarez and Jaime Munguia at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Maidana, 31, is well aware that he has long been defined by his older brother, Marcos Maidana, who retired in 2014 as one of Argentina’s most successful fighters. Marcos Maidana made a name for himself by giving Floyd Mayweather two tough fights, defeating Adrien Broner, and narrowly losing to Amir Khan in 2010.

While Fabian's fight with Barrios may be lower-profile, he sees it as an opportunity to make his own mark in the boxing world.

"My brother has left an indelible mark in boxing, no doubt about that, and like you said, I’ve come here to leave my own mark," Fabian said. "To win; to give the fans a great fight; and start my own chapter."

Barrios, on the other hand, is coming off two wins against Yordenis Ugas and Jovanie Santiago after defeats to Keith Thurman and Gervonta “Tank” Davis. He sees those losses as learning experiences that have helped him improve as a fighter.

"Those fights taught me a lot," Barrios said. "I’m still going in there with bad intentions. Still going in there a smart fighter."

When asked about his prediction for the main event between Alvarez and Munguia, Barrios gave the edge to Alvarez.

"You got the two Mexican warriors in there; I’m gonna give it to Canelo off of experience," he said. "I wouldn’t be surprised if it went early, but I’m gonna go with Canelo."

The stage is set for an exciting night of boxing on Saturday, with Maidana and Barrios looking to make their mark in their respective fights.