By Cliff Rold

If Anthony Crolla’s story was a boxing movie, the flick might already be over. Anthony Crolla (30-4-3, 12 KO) battled his way though early setbacks only to find the heartache of a draw in his first title shot. Given a second chance, he overcame adversity in a November rematch last year, knocking out Darleys Perez for the WBA title in five rounds.

Cue the horns, hug the girl, and roll credits.

Boxing isn’t a movie, no matter how many good movies it lends to. Boxing is a sport. The only way one gets out a champion is to retire before they get retired. That’s the way of things.

Crolla could have tried to bide his time. He could have waited for a possible unification showdown with fellow UK product and WBO titlist Terry Flanagan. He could have tried to cash in.

Instead, Crolla will face interim WBA lightweight titlist Ismael Barroso. His reign could be short lived. Barroso is not unfamiliar to UK fans who saw him knock former title challenger Kevin Mitchell last December. Venezuela has a potential winner in the big punching challenger and Crolla might watch the potential for a major domestic showdown shift across the Atlantic.

Barroso (19-0-2, 18 KO) isn’t a perfect fighter. His offense can be predictable at times. He’s already 33 years old, a pro since 2005. He’s waited a long time for a big chance in a career that struggled to stay active. Arriving at his moment, he has two things going for him that can’t be taught. Barroso has quick hands.

And Barroso can hit.

He’s got the sort of pop that can inject some life into the lightweight division.

Crolla, who has been stopped once in his career, doesn’t score a ton of knockouts. He came up with a big one against Perez, landing a wicked body shot to lift the crown. He’ll need to find shots like that again to keep Barroso at bay.

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On a weekend where the attention of the US boxing world will be fixed in Las Vegas, fight fans watching from home get this one well before the big lights comes on (AWE, 2:30 PM EST/11:30 PM PST). It will be paired with additional coverage of the Heavyweight fight between former title challengers Kubrat Pulev and Derek Chisora.

It’s not a bad way to spend an afternoon. From this vantage point, the lightweights are the more interesting of the two primary bouts (an expect plenty of undercard coverage). Crolla was a good story last year. Barroso is the one to keep an eye on here.

He might be Venezuela’s most interesting emergent face since Edwin Valero was poised for stardom. Valero, who turned out even more a monster outside the ring than in, looked like he had a chance to be Venezuela’s finest fighter in ages. While Barroso doesn’t have the same sort of eye popping physical talent on the surface, the two men share some similarities in the squared circle: both southpaws, both with enviable knockout percentages, both with sudden striking ability.

While it has long been the home of the WBA, Venezuela hasn’t always been the one of the boxing hotbeds of the Latin world. That doesn’t mean it has lacked for talent.

Leo Gamez won titles in four weight classes from 105 to 115 lbs. Crisanto Espana made a brief but memorable splash at welterweight in the 1990s, winning and losing memorable battles against Meldrick Taylor and Ike Quartey respectively. Vicente Rondon won a piece of the light heavyweight title in the 1970s before having it violently repossessed by the great Bob Foster. Lorenzo Parra looked like one of the better traveling bad asses in the world before weight issues, injuries, and layoffs derailed the promising flyweight titlist in the 2000s.  In the 1960s, Carlos Hernandez won the Jr. welterweight crown (if with some controversy) from Hall of Famer Eddie Perkins.

Two of the finest fighters from Venezuela, Antonio Esparragoza and Betulio Gonzalez, both made sizable marks.

Gonzalez fought a who’s who of one of the great flyweight classes ever in the 1970s. He won the WBC title twice, the WBA once, and handed the great Miguel Canto a loss in their first fight of a trilogy. Gonzalez also had impressive wins over the likes of Shoji Oguma and Guty Espadas in a career long overdue for Hall of Fame recognition.

Esparragoza had a lengthy run as the WBA and lineal featherweight champion from 1987-91, creeping into Ring Magazine’s top five pound-for-pound in the late 80s and early 90s. Esparragoza was a genuine world traveler, defending successfully in six countries through seven title defenses. A fantastic all around fighter with an educated jab and tremendous killer instinct, Esparragoza scored 27 stops in 30 wins.

That’s some of the legacy Barroso will be trying to live up to against Crolla this weekend. Win and Venezuela would have two of the premiere lightweights in the world. Jorge Linares was recently stripped due to injury of the WBC crown. He’s also one fight removed from a well-received first title fight in his home country.

Linares has always had plenty of talent and skill, but he’s also shown vulnerability and inconsistency. Barroso might not be as refined but he might be the sort of threat that can prey on that. If this weekend doesn’t end with UK fans clamoring for Crolla-Flanagan, could it be the start of a drum beat for Barroso-Linares?

We’ll find out Saturday.      

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com