Very few twins appear in the world of boxing. That is why the programming of the young Ari and Andrey Bonilla on the evening of August 23 at the Seminole is quite new. Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
They are not just attracting attention because they are twins and boxers. The main thing is that they are really good and will make their debut as professional boxers in the South Florida ring.
Suffice it to say that at just 18 years of age, both of them wear the International Boxing Association world champion belt, won in 2023.
“It’s been 14 years since Mexican amateur boxing won an amateur world title,” Ari said. “And we gave it to Mexico twice.”
Ari still doesn’t have a defined opponent for next August 23, but Andrey has already been assigned the Colombian Wilner Soto, a veteran with more than 20 fights in the professional ranks.
With the boldness of youth, Ari and Andrey are not worried about their next rivals but are full of enthusiasm for the moment of their jump to professionalism. On Wednesday of next week they land in South Florida and while they prepare in El Paso, Texas, under the watchful eye of their trainer Zamir Lozano, who previously worked with the world champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Ari weighs 115 pounds and is in the super flyweight category and Andrey weighs 118 and is in the bantamweight category.
Both say they have all the characteristics of Mexican boxing, which means they go forward from the moment the bell rings, but they also feel like stylists.
“That’s because when we started boxing at the age of five, we had a Cuban teacher, Brito Magdaleno,” Andrey said. “He shaped us and taught us that the most beautiful thing in boxing is to hit and not get hit, and to do that you have to be very good.”
It’s not that they shy away from blows. After all, they were born in a hot place, where life is at stake at every step.
“We are from Ciudad Juarez, on the border with the United States, and where everything crosses,” Ari said. “There you see drugs, bullets, death and life goes on. We were saved because we entered boxing when we were very young and we forged the dream of going far.”
One of their biggest aspirations was to represent Mexico at the 2024 Paris Olympics. They were very close. Both reached the qualifiers in Italy and each won three fights, but in the fourth and final one they lost and that great aspiration was cut short. And that is why they decided to seek glory in another way and decided to become professional boxers once and for all.
“We have very high expectations in professional boxing,” said Andrey. “We are some of the best fighters Mexico has produced at the amateur level, and I say this without arrogance because of what we have done so far and we want to do much more.”
They would not want to have to fight each other along the way. They feel very connected, they support each other and the rigor of the profession is alleviated because they are together.
“We are very close,” Andrey added. “When it’s Ari’s turn to fight, I get nervous. I’m always watching the fight develop and I’m reassured by the fact that I’ve seen him prepare with such dedication that I’m sure he’ll be able to successfully respond to any problem that may arise in the ring.”
An example of the level of preparation that both of them have is the fact that they have been preparing for this debut for three months.
“There aren’t many twins in the history of boxing,” Ari said. “I think the most well-known are the current World Boxing Council champions Jermall and Jermell Charlo, in middleweight and super welterweight respectively. And we want to get there like them.”
