By Norm Frauenheim and David Galaviz
PHOENIX, Ariz. — Only SuperFly could crash the top of the pound-pound debate.
Jesse Rodriguez did that and maybe more with a definitive seventh-round knockout of Juan Francisco Estrada Saturday night in front of a roaring crowd at Footprint.
Rodriguez (20-0, 13 KOs), the World Boxing Council’s new SuperFly champion, did it by knocking down Estrada (44-4, 28 KOs) in the fourth round and finishing him with a body shot in the seventh. He also did it by showing some of his own grit. He got up from the first knockdown in his career.
“Damn, that was crazy,” Rodriguez said.
Damn that was a good fight, a leading contender for Fight of the Year in 2024.
Estrada, down in the fourth round from a Bam uppercut, came roaring back in the sixth, knocking down Rodriguez with a right hand. What would follow in the seventh was — to use Bam’s word — crazy.
He threw a left hand to Estrada’s body.When it landed, it seemed to paralyze Estrada. He hit the canvas, rolled around in pain. In the final second of the seventh, he was finished, a loser by knockout.
“I made a lot of mistakes,” said the 37-year-old Estrada, who was fighting for the time in about 19 months.
He’s hoping to correct those mistakes in a rematch. Estrada said his contract included a clause for a rematch,perhaps later in the year.
For the 24-year-old Rodriguez, just about anything seems possible. There was even talk about a fight with Japan’s Naoya Inoue. That’s a pound-for-pound possibility, one created when Rodriguez crashed the top of the debate.
Bloodied Sunny Edwards wins technical decision
Sunny in Arizona? More like Scarred.
In his second straight fight in the Phoenix area science a bruising stoppage loss in December to Bam Rodriguez, UK flyweight Sunny Edwards sustained a nasty wound near his right eye in a fight eventually stopped because of a cut caused by a head butt.
This time, Edwards won, scoring a 90-82, 88-84, 87-85 technical decision over Adrian Curiel Saturday night at Footprint Center.
“I’m leaving Arizona a lot uglier than I was when I came here,” Edwards (21-1, 4 KOs) said after the flyweight bout.
The clash of heads came in the sixth. It caused a cut, a long deep gash from the inside of Edwards right eye and up along his forehead. Early in the ninth, referee Mark Nelson ended it on advice of the ringside physician.
The crowd booed.
“I’m not any happier than you are,” Edwards said.
Edwards, of the UK, came out fast, moving side-to-side and forward behind a jab moving at a rapid-fire rate. Curiel (24-6-1, 5 KOs), a former champion from Mexico, didn’t seem to notice, or care. He moved laterally, kept his gloves up in a defensive posture and seemed to wait for an opportunity. It didn’t come.
Edwards mocked him in the second, pushed him to the canvas with one hand in the third and mocked him again in the fifth. The crowd whistled, then booed. Then, there was the head butt. Edwards immediately responded, going straight at Curiel with a jab and long right hand. But the blood continued to pour from the cut and into his eyei, a sure sign that the fight would be stopped.
Mercado Decisions Ali To Retain Super Bantamweight belt
In the first of two world tittle fight we had Yamileth Mercado (23-3,5kos) of Ciudad Cuauthemoc, Chihuahua, Mexico taking on Ramla Ali (9-1,2kos) of London, United Kingdom. This will mark the first time fighting in the State since 2021 when she took on Amanda Serrano. This marks her 7th tittle defense of her WBC Super Bantamweight belt. Ramla is coming off a win in the rematch with Julissa Guzman last November. Both coming in at weight limit
In the opening round was not much action with each filling out one another. However Yamileth pulled away with a few more effective punches. Ramla came out more aggressive to start the 2nd round landed a straight left flush to Mercados face. Mercado got her revenge at the end of the round as she appeared to hurt Ali but it was too late as the round ended.
The fight picked up as both came out swinging and the continued through out the round with both landing good shots. Effortlessly getting the crowd excited in this tittle fight.
Ali is finding a home with her Jab continuing to land it, as in the fifth it caught Mercado.
The middle rounds of the fight had bits and pieces of action, no significant punches landing.
Much of the same as we entered the championship rounds of the fight, Ali did land an over and right and a left hook to edge out the round.
Yamileth came out swinging for the final round, but ali had an answer for the aggression once again with her neutralizer the left jab. Effectively halting Mercados offense. As the round continued both fighter put it in over drive and gave the fans in the Footprint Center a well deserved ending to the fight.
Going to the judges as each having Yamileth Mercado winning 98-92, 98-93, and 97-93 getting the unanimous decision. Successfully defending her tittle for the 8th time Mercado stated she now wants to unify the titles. —-David Galaviz
Cardenas escapes with a majority decision
A slow start. A furious finish.
Arturo Cardenas (14-0-1, 8 KOs) opened the DAZN show featuring Bam Rodriguez-Juan Francisco Estrada Saturday looking tentative. He appeared unsure of himself and perhaps his opponent, Phoenix Mexican junior-featherweight Danny Barrios (15–1, 5 KOs).
But he quickly overcame his slow start and, in the end, overcame Barrios.
Midway through the 10-round bout, the Robert Garcia-trained Cardenas began to find his range and used his superior power. Repeatedly, he caught Barrios with left hands and short right-uppercuts. The crowd roared. Then, it booed as Barrios began to retreat, back away from the increasingly aggressive Cardenas in the ninth and 10th.
In the end, Cardenas escaped with a majority decision. He won on two cards, 97-93 nd 96-94. But on the third, it was a draw, 95-95
Gabriel Muratalla stays unbeaten
Gabriel Muratalla, a workman-like bantamweight from Fontana CA, was all business.
In the end, that’s what he got, a business-like decision, over Carlos Fontes (23-4-1, 5 KOs), a well-conditioned Phoenix fighter, who lacked enough hand speed to match Muratalla (12-0, 5 KOs) on the scorecard in the third bout on the Bam-Rodriguez card at Footprint Center..
Muratalla, who had Bam trainer Robert Garcia in his corner, scored often, winning a 99-73, 78-74, 77-75 decision
AZ welterweight Fabian Rojo scores powerful stoppage
Fabian Rojo‘s left hand left no doubt.
No doubt about why he’s unbeaten.
And, on Saturday, it left Daniel Gonzalez with no chance.
Rojo (9-0, 7 KOs), of Glendale AZ, dropped Gonzalez (5-2,2 KOs), of Albuquerque, three times within two rounds, all with his left hand, in the second bout on a card featuring Juan Francisco Estrada versus Jesse “Bam Rodriguez at Footprint Center.
It ended with successive lefts, each moving like pistons in an engine. They landed like pistons, too, finishing Gonzalez at 1:13 of the second round. The crowd, already gathering in Footprint, roared. Even Gonzalez applauded. He got off the canvas and lifted Rojo up in celebration of a fighter who had just overwhelmed him.
To get the night started Leonardo Rubacalva (7-0 3Kos) of Teocaltich, Jalisco Mexico took on William “Double barrel” Flenoy (3-3-1) of Fresno, CA. The first round was all Leonardo landing at will, stunning flurry a few times. Things picked up in the 2nd with the fight and the crowd, as Leonardo started to put more pressure on his opponent. Midway through the fight Leo landed s very effective punch combination. Not to stay quiet William came with some shots of his own as to say my double barrel is not empty to which earned the respect of Rubacalva.
Half way through the fight both fighters showed the mutual respect and not much action happen. With 20 seconds in the 3rd, Rubacalva put it in another gear and landed a left hook that took Williams balance away and having going to the neutral corner with Leonardo following him and landing a few more punches before the bell rang to end the round.
An over hand right that caught everyone by surprise in the arena by Rubacalva other than the big right the 4th round was not much action.
The fifth round to which the fight lasted this long to many surprised was more of the same as the previous couple rounds a lot of respect and save the action till the last part of the round
The last round both fighters came out trading punches as if both needed to win the round. The way the round started is the way it ended with both fighters leaving it all out in the ring, not saving nothing for tomorrow. All 3 judges scored it for Leonardo 60-54, the other two having it 59-55 earning a unanimous decision improving to 8-0(3Kos). —-David Galaviz
