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Ronny Rios Shocks Diego De La Hoya in L.A. Fight Card

CARSON, Calif.-It was a night of upsets on a summer eve.
Ronny Rios toppled Diego De La Hoya in a super bantamweight showdown while another super bantamweight scrap saw WBC titlist Rey Vargas manage to hang onto his strap in a close 12-round affair on Saturday.
Upsets and reversal of fortunes were the name of the game for the more than 2,000 fans at the Dignity Health Sports Park. The Golden Boy Promotions fight card featured a pair of upsets and one near derailment. The fight card was streamed on DAZN.
None was more shocking than the showdown between two longtime members of the Golden Boy team, Rios and De La Hoya.
Santa Ana’s Rios (31-3, 15 KOs) walked into the ring happily as the underdog and it proved beneficial as he handed Diego De La Hoya (21-1, 10 KOs) his first pro loss and by knockout in their 12-round featherweight fight.
De La Hoya was the big favorite to remain undefeated on his quest to a world title but Rios snatched that opportunity away with a gritty example of trench warfare. Even more surprising was the end that came by knockout. Rios is not a big puncher and De La Hoya is known for his ability to take a blow like his older cousin and boss Oscar De La Hoya.
But not on this night.
Rios had lost his one and only world title opportunity when he fought Rey Vargas two years ago in this same venue. Before walking into the boxing ring on Saturday he had promised to show what he can really do as the underdog.
“I love being the underdog,” Rios said on Wednesday.
On Saturday he showed why underdog status was an advantage as he caught De La Hoya repeatedly with left hooks and right uppercuts. That same combination put De La Hoya down for the first time in his career. He could not continue and referee Rudy Barragan stopped the fight at 1:17 of the sixth round. It gives Rios the win by knockout and the NABF super bantamweight title.
“I saw a lot of tape and noticed he has a really high guard. It leaves him open to the body. We were working on that in the gym a lot. Honestly, it was shock. I didn’t know he was going down,” said Rios. “I know Diego, he is a warrior and he’s never been down.”
De La Hoya was gracious in defeat.
“I didn’t feel well. I didn’t feel right,” said De La Hoya. “You have to accept the losses just like you accept the wins.”
Rey Vargas
WBC super bantamweight world titlist Rey Vargas (34-0, 22 KOs) had his hands full with Japan’s Tomoki Kameda (36-3, 20 KOs) who showed up with plenty of Mexican and Japanese fans and plenty of tricks in his bag. But Vargas was able to hit and hold his way to another victory despite the fan outcry that saw the judges favor Vargas with a unanimous decision.
The taller Vargas used his height, speed and reach to keep the fight on the outside. But Kameda, who trains in Mexico, had other thoughts and used his quickness and hand speed to connect with telling blows throughout. He was especially effective with wide left hooks and overhand rights.
Kameda tried for most of the fight to get inside and engage in close, but every time he got inside the reach of Vargas the Mexican fighter would grab hold of the Japanese fighter. Despite constantly using this illegal tactic referees seem to ignore the egregious use of holding so Vargas continues to use it.
In the final round as Kameda tried valiantly to get inside, Vargas held him again and as the referee Jerry Cantu tried to break the stranglehold Kameda connected with a blow that buckled the Mexican fighter. The referee deducted a point from Kameda for the hit during the break but never warned Vargas for holding in any round of the fight.
“I believe that he won the fight tonight and I respect him as a champion. He won,” said Kameda. “I need to learn and to practice more in order to get another chance to be champion again.”
Hundreds of fans booed the announcement declaring Vargas the winner by unanimous decision, 117-110 on all three cards. Also in the audience was WBA and IBF super bantamweight titlist Danny Roman.
Vargas spotted him and asked for a unification match.
“You know when a Mexican fights another Mexican, it’s a war,” said Vargas to Roman.
Not when a fighter holds as much as Vargas.
Joet Gonzalez
After several years of eyeing each other as prospects Joet Gonzalez (23-0, 14 KOs) battered Manuel Avila (23-2-1, 8 KOs) to win by knockout once he got going. Ultimately the Glendora, California featherweight used a relentless attack to surprisingly force referee Jose Cobian to end the fight at 2:27 of round six.
Avila started quickly in the fight with his speed and movement as Gonzalez patiently stalked the Northern California fighter. Occasionally Gonzalez fired a lead right to the head or body but allowed Avila to take the lead in their dance.
In the third round Gonzalez took over the fight and began pressuring Avila behind a tight guard and unleashed a five-punch combination that caught Avila’s attention with the impact and accuracy. A strong left jab and a right cross connected solidly for Gonzalez at the end of the round.
For the next three rounds Gonzalez grabbed total control of the fight and cut off all escape routes for Avila. A six-punch barrage ended with a right uppercut and Avila’s face looked bruised and swollen. Gonzalez did not ease up on the pedal and kept Avila on his back foot. A left to the body and several blows up and down saw Avila lower his head and then go down. Gonzalez had leaned on his head so referee Jose Cobian ruled it a push down but Avila was surprised by the referee’s decision. He got up and Gonzalez attacked again and with another four-punch combination put Avila down on the floor for a knockdown. Avila got up but looked bewildered.
Gonzalez allowed a couple of quick one-two combinations by Avila in the sixth round then pummeled him relentlessly until the referee stopped the fight at 2:27 of the sixth round. Gonzalez now holds both the WBO Global and WBA Continental Americas featherweight titles.
“I am not like these cherry pickers. I will fight the best and beat the best. I just want the champions,” said Gonzalez.
Another Upset
Within seconds of the opening bell, both Venezuela’s Roger Gutierrez (22-3-1, 19 KOs) and Mexico’s Rocky Hernandez (28-1, 25 KOs) were bloodied from each other’s blows. By 2:39 after some brutal exchanges Gutierrez connected with a right cross and floored the shorter Hernandez. Though he tried mightily to get up, Hernandez just couldn’t master his balance and tumbled downward. Referee Rudy Barragan waved the fight over.
Alexis Rocha (14-0, 9 KOs) of Santa Ana, Calif. pounded out a victory by knockout in the eighth round over Puerto Rico’s Berlin Abreu (14-3, 11 KOs) in a welterweight fight. Referee Jack Reiss stopped the fight at 2:56 of round eight. Rocha is the younger brother of Ronny Rios.
Kazakhstan’s Ruslan Madiyev (13-1, 5 KOs) out-fought Ricky Sismundo (35-14-3, 17 KOs) of the Philippines to win by unanimous decision after eight rounds in a super lightweight bout.
Jousce Gonzalez (9-0-1, 9 KOs) of Glendora, Calif. knocked out Mexico’s Jorge Padron (3-4, 3 KOs) at 2:15 of the second round in their lightweight match. Gonzalez is the younger brother of Joet Gonzalez.
Photo credit: Al Applerose
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Ringside at the Fontainebleau where Mikaela Mayer Won her Rematch with Sandy Ryan

LAS VEGAS, NV — The first meeting between Mikaela Mayer and Sandy Ryan last September at Madison Square Garden was punctuated with drama before the first punch was thrown. When the smoke cleared, Mayer had become a world-title-holder in a second weight class, taking away Ryan’s WBO welterweight belt via a majority decision in a fan-friendly fight.
The rematch tonight at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas was another fan-friendly fight. There were furious exchanges in several rounds and the crowd awarded both gladiators a standing ovation at the finish.
Mayer dominated the first half of the fight and held on to win by a unanimous decision. But Sandy Ryan came on strong beginning in round seven, and although Mayer was the deserving winner, the scores favoring her (98-92 and 97-93 twice) fail to reflect the competitiveness of the match-up. This is the best rivalry in women’s boxing aside from Taylor-Serrano.
Mayer, 34, improved to 21-2 (5). Up next, she hopes, in a unification fight with Lauren Price who outclassed Natasha Jonas earlier this month and currently holds the other meaningful pieces of the 147-pound puzzle. Sandy Ryan, 31, the pride of Derby, England, falls to 7-3-1.
Co-Feature
In his first defense of his WBO world welterweight title (acquired with a brutal knockout of Giovani Santillan after the title was vacated by Terence Crawford), Atlanta’s Brian Norman Jr knocked out Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas in the third round. A three-punch combination climaxed by a short left hook sent Cuevas staggering into a corner post. He got to his feet before referee Thomas Taylor started the count, but Taylor looked in Cuevas’s eyes and didn’t like what he saw and brought the bout to a halt.
The stoppage, which struck some as premature, came with one second remaining in the third stanza.
A second-generation prizefighter (his father was a fringe contender at super middleweight), the 24-year-old Norman (27-0, 21 KOs) is currently boxing’s youngest male title-holder. It was only the second pro loss for Cuevas (27-2-1) whose lone previous defeat had come early in his career in a 6-rounder he lost by split decision.
Other Bouts
In a career-best performance, 27-year-old Brooklyn featherweight Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (15-0, 9 KOs) blasted out Jose Enrique Vivas (23-4) in the third round.
Carrington, who was named the Most Outstanding Boxer at the 2019 U.S. Olympic Trials despite being the lowest-seeded boxer in his weight class, decked Vivas with a right-left combination near the end of the second round. Vivas barely survived the round and was on a short leash when the third stanza began. After 53 seconds of round three, referee Raul Caiz Jr had seen enough and waived it off. Vivas hadn’t previously been stopped.
Cleveland welterweight Tiger Johnson, a Tokyo Olympian, scored a fifth-round stoppage over San Antonio’s Kendo Castaneda. Johnson assumed control in the fourth round and sent Castaneda to his knees twice with body punches in the next frame. The second knockdown terminated the match. The official time was 2:00 of round five.
Johnson advanced to 15-0 (7 KOs). Castenada declined to 21-9.
Las Vegas junior welterweight Emiliano Vargas (13-0, 11 KOs) blasted out Stockton, California’s Giovanni Gonzalez in the second round. Vargas brought the bout to a sudden conclusion with a sweeping left hook that knocked Gonzalez out cold. The end came at the 2:00 minute mark of round two.
Gonzalez brought a 20-7-2 record which was misleading as 18 of his fights were in Tijuana where fights are frequently prearranged. However, he wasn’t afraid to trade with Vargas and paid the price.
Emiliano Vargas, with his matinee idol good looks and his boxing pedigree – he is the son of former U.S. Olympian and two-weight world title-holder “Ferocious” Fernando Vargas – is highly marketable and has the potential to be a cross-over star.
Eighteen-year-old Newark bantamweight Emmanuel “Manny” Chance, one of Top Rank’s newest signees, won his pro debut with a four-round decision over So Cal’s Miguel Guzman. Chance won all four rounds on all three cards, but this was no runaway. He left a lot of room for improvement.
There was a long intermission before the co-main and again before the main event, but the tedium was assuaged by a moving video tribute to George Foreman.
Photos credit: Al Applerose
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William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0
No surprise, once again William Zepeda eked out a win over the clever and resilient Tevin Farmer to remain undefeated and retain a regional lightweight title on Saturday.
There were no knockdowns in this rematch.
The Mexican punching machine Zepeda (33-0, 17 KOs) once more sought to overwhelm Farmer (33-8-1, 9 KOs) with a deluge of blows. This rematch by Golden Boy Promotions took place in the famous beach resort area of Cancun, Mexico.
It was a mere four months ago that both first clashed in Saudi Arabia with their vastly difference styles. This time the tropical setting served as the background which suited Zepeda and his lawnmower assaults. The Mexican fans were pleased.
Nothing changed in their second meeting.
Zepeda revved up the body assault and Farmer moved around casually to his right while fending off the Mexican fighter’s attacks. By the fourth round Zepeda was able to cut off Farmer’s escape routes and targeted the body with punishing shots.
The blows came in bunches.
In the fifth round Zepeda blasted away at Farmer who looked frantic for an escape. The body assault continued with the Mexican fighter pouring it on and Farmer seeming to look ready to quit. When the round ended, he waved off his corner’s appeals to stop.
Zepeda continued to dominate the next few rounds and then Farmer began rallying. At first, he cleverly smothered Zepeda’s body attacks and then began moving and hitting sporadically. It forced the Mexican fighter to pause and figure out the strategy.
Farmer, a Philadelphia fighter, showed resiliency especially when it was revealed he had suffered a hand injury.
During the last three rounds Farmer dug down deep and found ways to score and not get hit. It was Boxing 101 and the Philly fighter made it work.
But too many rounds had been put in the bank by Zepeda. Despite the late rally by Farmer one judge saw it 114-114, but two others scored it 116-112 and 115-113 for Zepeda who retains his interim lightweight title and place at the top of the WBC rankings.
“I knew he was a difficult fighter. This time he was even more difficult,” said Zepeda.
Farmer was downtrodden about another loss but realistic about the outcome and starting slow.
“But I dominated the last rounds,” said Farmer.
Zepeda shrugged at the similar outcome as their first encounter.
“I’m glad we both put on a great show,” said Zepeda.
Female Flyweight Battle
Costa Rica’s Yokasta Valle edged past Texas fighter Marlen Esparza to win their showdown at flyweight by split decision after 10 rounds.
Valle moved up two weight divisions to meet Esparza who was slightly above the weight limit. Both showed off their contrasting styles and world class talent.
Esparza, a former unified flyweight world titlist, stayed in the pocket and was largely successful with well-placed jabs and left hooks. She repeatedly caught Valle in-between her flurries.
The current minimumweight world titlist changed tactics and found more success in the second half of the fight. She forced Esparza to make the first moves and that forced changes that benefited her style.
Neither fighter could take over the fight.
After 10 rounds one judge saw Esparza the winner 96-94, but two others saw Valle the winner 97-93 twice.
Will Valle move up and challenge the current undisputed flyweight world champion Gabriela Fundora? That’s the question.
Valle currently holds the WBC minimumweight world title.
Puerto Rico vs Mexico
Oscar Collazo (12-0, 9 KOs), the WBO, WBA minimumweight titlist, knocked out Mexico’s Edwin Cano (13-3-1, 4 KOs) with a flurry of body shots at 1:12 of the fifth round.
Collazo dominated with a relentless body attack the Mexican fighter could not defend. It was the Puerto Rican fighter’s fifth consecutive title defense.
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 319: Rematches in Las Vegas, Cancun and More

Rematches are the bedrock for prizefighting.
Return battles between rival boxers always means their first encounter was riveting and successful at the box office.
Six months after their first brutal battle Mikaela Mayer (20-2, 5 KOs) and Sandy Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs) will slug it out again for the WBO welterweight world title this time on Saturday, March 29, at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas.
ESPN will show the Top Rank card live.
“It’s important for women’s boxing to have these rivalries and this is definitely up there as one of the top ones,” Mayer told the BBC.
If you follow Mayer’s career you know that somehow drama follows. Whether its back-and-forth beefs with fellow American fighters or controversial judging due to nationalism in countries abroad. The Southern California native who now trains in Las Vegas knows how to create the drama.
For female fighters self-promotion is a necessity.
Most boxing promoters refuse to step out of the usual process set for male boxers, not for female boxers. Things remain the same and have been for the last 70 years. Social media has brought changes but that has made promoters do even less.
No longer are there press conferences, instead announcements are made on social media to be drowned among the billions of other posts. It is not killing but diluting interest in the sport.
Women innately present a different advantage that few if any promoters are recognizing. So far in the past 25 years I have only seen two or three promoters actually ignite interest in female fighters. They saw the advantages and properly boosted interest in the women.
The fight breakdown
Mayer has won world titles in the super featherweight and now the welterweight division. Those are two vastly different weight classes and prove her fighting abilities are based on skill not power or size.
Coaching Mayer since amateurs remains Al Mitchell and now Kofi Jantuah who replaced Kay Koroma the current trainer for Sandy Ryan.
That was the reason drama ignited during their first battle. Then came someone tossing paint at Ryan the day of their first fight.
More drama.
During their first fight both battled to control the initiative with Mayer out-punching the British fighter by a slender margin. It was a back-and-forth struggle with each absorbing blows and retaliating immediately.
New York City got its money’s worth.
Ryan had risen to the elite level rapidly since losing to Erica Farias three years ago. Though she was physically bigger and younger, she was out-maneuvered and defeated by the wily veteran from Argentina. In the rematch, however, Ryan made adjustments and won convincingly.
Can she make adjustments from her defeat to Mayer?
“I wanted the rematch straight away,” said Ryan on social media. “I’ve come to America again.”
Both fighters have size and reach. In their first clash it was evident that conditioning was not a concern as blows were fired nonstop in bunches. Mayer had the number of punches landed advantage and it unfolded with the judges giving her a majority decision win.
That was six months ago. Can she repeat the outcome?
Mayer has always had boiler-oven intensity. It’s not fake. Since her amateur days the slender Southern California blonde changes disposition all the way to red when lacing up the gloves. It’s something that can’t be taught.
Can she draw enough of that fire out again?
“I didn’t have to give her this rematch. I could have just sat it out, waited for Lauren Price to unify and fought for undisputed or faced someone else,” said Mayer to BBC. “That’s not the fighter I am though.”
Co-Main in Las Vegas
The co-main event pits Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs) facing Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1, 19 KOs) in a contest for the WBO welterweight title.
Norman, 24, was last seen a year ago dissecting a very good welterweight in Giovani Santillan for a knockout win in San Diego. He showed speed, skill and power in defeating Santillan in his hometown.
Cuevas has beaten some solid veteran talent but this will be his big test against Norman and his first attempt at winning a world title.
Also on the Top Rank card will be Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington and Emiliano Vargas, the son of Fernando Vargas, in separate bouts.
Golden Boy in Cancun
A rematch between undefeated William “Camaron” Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) and ex-champ Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs) headlines the lightweight match on Saturday March 29, at Cancun, Mexico.
In their first encounter Zepeda was knocked down in the fourth round but rallied to win a split-decision over Farmer. It showed the flaws in Zepeda’s tornado style.
DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card that also includes a clash between Yokasta Valle the WBC minimumweight world titlist who is moving up to flyweight to face former flyweight champion Marlen Esparza.
Both Valle and Esparza have fast hands.
Valle is excellent darting in and out while Esparza has learned how to fight inside. It’s a toss-up fight.
Fights to Watch
Fri. DAZN 12 p.m. Cameron Vuong (7-0) vs Jordan Flynn (11-0-1); Pat Brown (0-0) vs Federico Grandone (7-4-2).
Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. William Zepeda (32-0) vs Tevin Farmer (33-7-1); Yokasta Valle (32-3) vs Marlen Esparza (15-2).
Sat. ESPN 7 p.m. Mikaela Mayer (20-2) vs Sandy Ryan (7-2-1); Brian Norman Jr. (26-0) vs Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1).
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank
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