Photo by Chris Farina/Top Rank Promotions

HBO has provided a training blog taken from an interview with Brandon Rios in advance of his third fight with Mike Alvarado on Jan. 24 at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado, near Alvarado’s hometown of Denver.

Having split their prior bouts as junior welterweights, Rios (32-2-1, 23 knockouts) and Alvarado (34-3, 23 KOs) will contest their rubber match as welterweights.

Click here for a video of Road to Alvarado vs. Rios III, which will be premiere on HBO Saturday at midnight ET/PT

A former lightweight titleholder, Rios is 2-2 in his past four fights. The 28-year-old slugger is coming off a ninth-round disqualification victory over Diego Chaves in August to bounce back from a unanimous decision loss to Manny Pacquiao in November 2013.

Prior to Pacquiao, Rios had split junior welterweight bouts with Alvarado, stopping him in the seventh round in October 2012 but losing their rematch by close unanimous decision in March 2013.

Alvarado, 34, is 3-3 in his past six fights, last seen swapping knockdowns with Juan Manuel Marquez en route to a unanimous decision loss in May.

Questions for Rios: Can you discuss the first two bouts against Alvarado and what to expect in the final chapter of this trilogy?

“Our first two fights were exciting and have become legendary. I am proud to be associated with them and with Mike Alvarado. We gave the fans and ourselves the best we had to offer and produced spectacular performances. It was so intense and so close. All I kept thinking in each fight was, ‘Don’t stop. Keep moving forward.’

“I am training hard and well for this fight. [Trainer] Robert [Garcia] and I are working on using the ring in case Alvarado tries to run. I run in the mornings at 6 a.m. if the weather permits it. On mornings when it is raining, I run on the treadmill in my home. The training method I am using is going back to the basics that I used in our first fight.

“I expect Alvarado to do what he did in the second fight, which is to run and move. He thinks I am going to follow him like I did in the second fight. His fight game did change from one fight to the other as he didn’t fight toe-to-toe in the second fight. He did move and run around more in the second fight. At least I think he did, you can call it whatever you want.

“We are working on everything we think he will be bringing to the table but this time, we will be 100 percent ready for him. Preparation is our motto. No, I don’t have any concerns fighting in Alvarado’s hometown. It is only a few of hours away from my hometown, Garden City, Kansas.

“We are looking to get some Garden City friends and family to come and support me in Denver. I am actually looking forward to fighting in his hometown. It is part of what makes boxing and sports so fun and challenging. Look, he fought me in Carson, California, which is close to my home base of Oxnard. I look forward to fighting him in front of his fans this time.”