Power, good looks, the body that makes casual fans, fight promoters, and TV networks take notice, and a nice record with a fine knockout rate.
What is it that keeps Juan Urango off of everyone's radar?
Urango took his IBF 140-pound strap (won against Naoufel Ben Rabah) into an HBO headlining fight against Ricky "Hitman" Hatton in January of 2007. I thought Urango could have been considered something of a live dog.
Hatton won, 119-109 on all three cards. But he never looked like he hurt the rock-solid Urango, whose offensive gameplan was terrible at best and non-existent at worst. When he bothered to turn up the heat -- or, more accurately, turn on any heat -- he was able to stand with the "Hitman," who was returning to the junior welterweight ranks after a shaky 147-pound debut over Luis Collazo.
Why did Urango seem to so easily roll over for Hatton? Was he star-struck by his opponent, the Vegas lights, the HBO cameras, the general attention that came with going from being a nobody to a big-time, Saturday night main eventer? Perhaps. Or maybe it was just that Hatton was too much for him.
But that is an excuse I don't really buy, as Hatton was hardly at his best that night. Whatever it was, Urango lost, convincingly, and it was back to the sticks for a recent titlist.
TKO wins over Nasser Athumani and Marty Robbins got him up to 19 career wins, but proved little more than that.
Anybody that caught Urango's fourth round knockout of Carlos Vilches (53-8-2, 31 KO) on Wednesday Night Fights saw what he's capable of. The southpaw Colombian threw a vicious right hook that ended Vilches' night in short order in the fourth round, and became a quick contender for Knockout of the Year (it's well behind Miranda over Banks if you ask me, but a great knockout is a great knockout).
Let's say Urango learned something from the Hatton loss, and you'd have to guess that he has. Where does he fit in at 140 pounds? Hatton, Junior Witter, Paulie Malignaggi, and Ricardo Torres are all busy for the time being. Kendall Holt is getting another shot at Torres, N'dou has another chance to beat Malignaggi, Lazcano will look to knock off Hatton, and top prospect Timothy Bradley is stepping into the deep waters with Witter.
Who's out there? Andreas Kotelnik holds an alphabet title, having just beaten Gavin Rees in decisive fashion. Rees himself, a tough scrapper that Urango would probably beat, sounds like he wants to move down to 135 and take a crack at Amir Khan.
Vivian Harris could use a dance partner. So could Herman Ngoudjo. And there's always Demetrius Hopkins, whenever he gets his career straightened out.
Urango needs a high-profile win, or at least something as high-profile as Harris or Ngoudjo. Urango-Ngoudjo, in fact, would be a wonderful ESPN2 headliner or premium cable undercard bout. Both guys have faced top competition and lost, though Ngoudjo made a better showing against Malignaggi than Urango did against Hatton.
Is it possible that Urango could be the darkhorse at 140? Judging by how he looked on Wednesday, I wouldn't look past this guy anymore. He doesn't turn 28 until October, has shown real power and a good chin, and he showed legit one-punch power against Vilches.
I might be too early to really sound the alarm, but Urango has officially entered my list of guys to keep an eye on. He might not rocket up the ranks, but if he gets a chance, look out.