Juan Pablo Rojo, president of Cimarrones de Sonora, stated that he sees it unfeasible to join the Liga del Balompié Mexicano, as it will not include the big teams of national football, such as América, Cruz Azul, Chivas, and Pumas.
"The Development League, in the end, does not eliminate the presence of América, Chivas, Cruz Azul, and Pumas, and as long as the Liga MX continues to exist, all the leagues that do not participate in it will be inferior. That's why I don't see much point in it right now since the big teams are over there and those big teams will never stop being big," he commented to ESPN Digital.
"What I do totally rule out is participating in the Liga de Balompié Mexicano," as he indicated that there are certain structural unknowns surrounding it. "Since it will not be federated, the boys will not be considered for the National Team, and it is unknown under what compliance structure it will be carried out."
In addition, the executive said that he was surprised by some votes from the "top" clubs regarding the decision to remove the Ascenso MX in Mexican football and highlighted the fact that institutions like Guadalajara, Necaxa, and Pachuca voted against that happening.
"It made me very happy to see two clubs; one, Chivas, because everyone blamed this on Chivas, and it surprises me because I don't think the Liga de Ascenso is in Chivas' vision. It is one of the four biggest teams in the country and its project, since Amaury Vergara arrived, is on another level and its vision is different," he said to ESPN Digital.
Juan Pablo Rojo expressed: "Every time I saw that it was to protect Chivas, I said, 'No, please, let's not go that way.' And I really liked that Mr. Jorge Vergara's legacy was represented, as he was always very particular about competition, pushing in the free market. I don't have the pleasure of knowing Amaury, but I was able to see that there is a continuation of his father's legacy there."
He said that the other team that caught his attention for supporting the preservation of the Ascenso MX is Necaxa: "they remember how difficult the ascent was and they know what it means to be going up and down."
On the other hand, regarding whether he was invited to the meeting with Jesús Martínez, allegedly with the clubs that also oppose the disappearance of the Ascenso MX, he responded: "No, I was not informed of this meeting, although I already knew their stance, based on all the interactions I have had with them and the first-hand knowledge of Zacatecas' vote, which belongs to Grupo Pachuca."
"One of the comments made by Jesús Martínez Murguía is that they recognize and value what the ascent contributes to the formation of a club and to the development of players. His stance seemed very viable, very correct, and if accompanied by a macroeconomic improvement, it can certainly be explored."
Juan Pablo Rojo was not surprised that the president of Correcaminos, Miguel Mansur, confirmed that the idea of removing the Ascenso MX started through Tampico Madero, as he recalled the great rivalry that exists between the two teams, being from the same state.
"In fact, the best match of the previous tournament was the Clásico of Ascenso MX between Correcaminos and Tampico. Obviously, there is a very strong rivalry there; without a doubt, Miguel's comments have been very specific, very direct, and very focused on defending the position that the statute be respected."
"The particular assertions he makes, well, we already saw that he had a certain reason, based on Grupo Orlegi's statement; this, I believe, is not a topic that adds up right now, besides it is not the right medium. I think that kind of comment is not for a public forum."