Emanuel Navarrete retained the WBO Featherweight Title with a sixth round stoppage over Eduardo Baez at The Pechanga Sports Arena in San Diego.
In round six, Navarrete landed a perfect left hook to the side that sent Baez down on delayed reaction and the fight was over at 1:05.
Navarrete, 125.8 lbs of Mexico is 36-1 with 30 knockouts. Baez, 125.8 lbs of Mexicali, MEX is 21-3-2.
“I expected a fight like this. I never underestimated Eduardo Baez. I knew that he was an excellent fighter and the fact that he hit pretty hard. It was a lot more complicated than I anticipated. But then came that shot, and I was able to finish him,” Navarrete said. “That’s a very Mexican punch. It comes with my blood. And you can see, I don’t throw a perfect left hook like you’re used to seeing. But this one came out perfect for me. And you saw the result because not many guys can take that shot.”
Santillan Decisions Luna
Giovani Santillan remained undefeated won a 10-round unanimous decision over Julio Luna in a welterweight contest.
In round two, Santillan was cut along the right side of his forehead. Santillan fought through a cut over his right eye. It was a tough fight throughout that saw Santillan push the action.
Santillan landed 188 of 554 punches; Luna was 210 of 679.
Santillan, 147.4 lbs of San Diego, CA won by scores of 100-90 twice and 96-94 and is now 30-0. Luna, 147.4 of Gomez Palcios, MEX is 19-1-2.
“It was a lot tougher than I expected. Luna gave me a great fight, and I am just thankful for the opportunity to fight once again in my hometown,” Santillan said.
Nico Ali Walsh Stops Sanchez in 2 Rounds of Rematch
Nico Ali Walsh remained undefeated by stopping Reyes Sanchez in the second round of their four-round middleweight rematch.
In round two, Ali Walsh landed a hard left hook to the body that put Sanchez down for the 10-count at 2:45.
Ali Walsh, 157.8 lbs of Las Vegas, NV is 6-0 with five knockouts. Sanchez, 157.3 lbs of Topeka, KS is 7-3.
The fight was a rematch of a bout that saw Ali Walsh win a majority decision on December 11, 2021.
“I feel amazing. This was a special win because it was a rematch. It’s everything I’ve been working towards. My hard work is now showing in the ring. I want everyone to see that it’s a new me,” Ali Walsh said. “It was so gratifying. Timothy Bradley called it in the fighter meetings yesterday. It was a beautiful shot. It was the shot I was looking for. It was the shot I was dreaming about, and it happened because I worked so hard for it.”
In a battle of undefeated junior welterweights, Lindolfo Delgado won an eight-round unanimous decision over Omar Aguilar.
In round one, Aguilar began to bleed from his nose.
Delgado, 142 lbs of Linares, MEX won by scores of 79-73 twice and 77-75 and is now 16-0. Aguilar, 142 lbs of Ensanada, MEX is 24-1.
Austin Brooks remained undefeated with a four-round unanimous decision over Oliver Gallcia in a junior lightweight bout.
In round one, Brooks dropped Galicia with a left.
Brooks, 129.4 lbs of San Diego, CA won by scores of 40-35 on all cards and is now 8-0. Gallcia, 128.6 lbs of Los Angeles, CA is now 5-1-1.
Xavier Martinez stopped gritty Alejandro Guerrero in round five of a scheduled eight-round junior lightweight bout.
Martinez landed a lot of power shots through four-plus rounds, and in round five, Martinez landed several flush blows which included some booming right hands that forced a referee stoppage at 2:57.
Martinez, 131.6 lbs of Sacramento, CA is now 18-1 with 12 knockouts. Guerrero, 131.8 lbs of Houston, TX is 12-3.
Miguel Contreras won a eight-round unanimous decision over Josec Ruiz in a lightweight contest.
Contreras, 135.4 lbs of Bakersfield, CA won by scores of 80-72 twice and 79-73 and is now 12-1-1. Ruiz, 135.4 lbs of Honduras is 21-7-3.
Luis Alberto Lopez stopped Yeison Vargas in round two of a scheduled eight-round featherweight bout.
In round two, Lopez Lopez dropped Vargas with a left hook to the body for the 10-count at 1:24
Antonio Mireles shook off a first round knockdown to come back and stop Kaleel Carter in round two of their four-round heavyweight bout.
In round Charles dropped Mireles with a hard combination. In round two, Mireles landed a vicious combination that spun Carter around and the bout was stopped at 1:52.
Mireles, 266 lbs of Des Moines, IA is now 5-0 with five knockouts. Carter, 237 lbs of Bellflower, CA is 2-2.
