Rafael Espinoza made the first defense of the WBO Featherweight title with a four-round beatdown of Sergio Chirino at The Fontainbleau Las Vegas.
In round one, Espinoza landed a perfect short left uppercut under an attempted right of Chirino that landed right on Chirino’s jaw that put the challenger on the canvas. In round three, Espinoza dropped Chirino by landing a right uppercut that was followed by a left to the body. In round four, the relentless Espinoza landed a big uppercut on the chin that was followed up by another tapping uppercut that made Chirino wilt to the canvas and the fight was stopped at
Espinoza at 6’1″ is the tallest featherweight champion history and the 125-pound native of Guadalajara, MEX is 25-0 with 21 knockouts. Chirino, 125.6 lbs of Oaxaca, MEX is 23-2.
Espinoza said, “From the beginning, the hunger that I have to triumph, to be better and to move forward was apparent. I gave my heart, and it shows.
“We had a plan to control our distance in the fight. But I like throwing punches and showing people what they want to see, which is action. That’s why I went forward as soon as the first round began. I don’t like going backward.
“I’m here. It’s my time. The time of ‘El Divino.’ I want to unify, and I want the big challenges.”
Andres Cortes Decisions Abraham Nova
Andres Cortes won a 10-round unanimous decision over Abrham Nova in a junior lightweight bout.
In round three, Cortes was cut over his left eye from an accidental headbutt.
It seemed like Nova pulled out the decision by being more active down the stretch but it was Cortes who won by scores of 97-93 twice and 96-94.
Cortes landed 172 of 497 punches. Nova was 196 of 783.
Cortes, who was over the 130-pound weight limit at 130.8 lbs is now 22-0. Nova, 129.7 lbs of Albany, NY is 23-3.
Cortes said, “It was a tough fight. I knew he was a tough competitor. He just went 12 rounds with a world champion. So, I knew it would be a tough one.
“He was very dirty in there. He called me a dirty fighter, but he was really dirty in there. All these headbutts and stuff. But it was a good fight. No excuses. I dug deep and got the victory.”
Nova said, “This is boxing. This is what happens. I started a bit slow. But then I got my rhythm. I went in there, and I did what I had to do. He hit me a lot behind the head.
“This is boxing. All I’ve got to go is back to drawing board, fix a couple things and come back.”
In a battle of undefeated middleweight fighters who were amateur stars, Troy Isley won a 10-round unanimous decision over Javier Martinez.
In round seven, Martinez was deducted a point for low blows. A round later, it was Isley who had a point taken away for the same infraction.
Isley landed 206 of 674. Martinez was 134 of 553.
Isley, 158.9 lbs of Alexandria, VA won by scores of 97-91 twice and 96-92 and is now 13-0. Martinez, 159.8 lbs of Milwaukee is 10-1-1.
Isley said, “His two wins over me as an amateur meant nothing. The talent gap showed. We’re on to bigger things now. I want the champions soon.
“We knew to box him. We didn’t want to make it a firefight. I had to stay composed and box him.”
Floyd Diaz remained undefeated with an eight-round unanimous decision over Francisco Pedroza in a bantamweight fight.
In round six, Pedroza was deducted a point for hitting on the break.
Diaz, 117.8 lbs of Las Vegas won by scores of 78-73 on all cards and is now 12-0. Pedroza, 117.5 lbs of Tijuana, MEX is now 18-12-2.
DJ Zamora III remained undefeated with a eight-round unanimous decision over Juan Antonio Meza in a junior lightweight bout.
Zamora, 131.5 lbs of Las Vegas won by scores of 80-72 twice and 79-73 and is now 13-0. Meza, 131.2 lbs of Torreon, MEX is 9-10.
Steven Navarro won a six-round unanimous decision over Juan Pablo Meza in a junior bantamweight fight.
Navarro, 115.7 lbs of Los Angeles won by scores of 60-54 on all cards and is now 2-0. Meza, 114.8 lbs of Santiago, CHL is 7-4.
Bryan Polaco remained undefeated with a third round stoppage over Richard Acevedo in a six-round middleweight fight.
In round three, Polcao dropped Acevedo with a combination. Seconds later, it was a one-two that forced Acevedo’s glove to touch the canvas for a second knockdown. Later in the round, Acevedo began to swell from under his left eye. With Acevedo on unsteady legs, the bout was stopped at 2:51.
Polaco, 156 lbs of Fajardo, PR is 7-0 with five knockouts. Acevedo, 156.3 lbs of Oxnard, CA is 6-1-1.
