Jason Moloney edges Saul Sanchez and More Undercard Results from Quebec City

The first true title fight of 2024 was a WBO bantamweight title fight between Melbourne’s Jason Moloney and SoCal’s Saul Sanchez. Moloney was making the first defense of the title he won with a close decision over Vincent Astrolabio in Stockton, California.

Moloney vs. Sanchez wasn’t the biggie on the card at the Centre Videotron in Quebec City, Canada. It wasn’t even the semi-windup. The fight was the capper of the ESPN+ undercard. But Moloney vs Sanchez was a crowd-pleasing affair that went the distance and, although there were no knockdowns, this was a great table-setter for the two fights that would follow.

Sanchez was credited with throwing and landing more punches, but in the end two of the judges awarded the 33-year-old Aussie eight of the 12 rounds. The other judge had it a draw (114-114), as did ESPN’s unofficial scorer Mark Kriegel.

The twin brother of four-time world title challenger Andrew Moloney, who assisted the brothers’ longtime trainer Angelo Hyder in Jason’s corner, Jason (27-2, 19 KOs) fought the last 10 rounds with a gash over his right eye, the result of an accidental head butt. Both of his previous losses had come in world title fights. Sanchez, who had the noted trainer Manny Robles in his corner, lost for the third time in 23 fights and, in common with his previous two losses, both by split decision, lost a decision that could easily gone the other way.

The SRO crowd accorded both combatants a well-deserved ovation at the finish.

Other Bouts

Fast-rising light heavyweight Imam Khatiev (6-0, 6 KOs) pounded away at late sub Michael Ludwiczak until the referee halted the mismatch at the 2:17 mark of round two. An Australia-based Russian, the heavy-handed Khatiev bears a close resemblance to Artur Beterbiev from the neck down. The 29-year-old Ludwiczak, a peripatetic Pole, falls to 17-13-2.

In a rematch, super featherweight Leila Beaudoin (11-1, 1 KO) avenged her lone defeat with an 8-round unanimous decision over Eliabeth Chavez Espinoza (4-6-3). They met in May of last year in Cuernavaca, Mexico, with Chavez getting the nod in the same manner.

Nineteen-year-old Quebec City super middleweight Wilkens Mathieu (6-0, 5 KOs) had a stroll in the park against a man more than twice his age, a 39-year-old Mexican shoe factory worker named Jose Arias (3-2). To Arias’s credit, although he was outclassed in every round, he was still standing at the final bell.

Turkish import Mehmet Unal, a light heavyweight, needed only 57 seconds to dismiss Dragon Lepei. Fighting on his 31^st birthday, Unal (8-0, 7 KOs) ended the contest with a sweeping right hand that grazed Lepei (22-7-2), a 34-year-old Romanian who has been campaigning in Italy. The hapless Lepei made it to his feet, but the fight was stopped when his knees sagged.

In an 8-round welterweight match, Montreal’s Christopher Guerrero, a former Canadian amateur champion, advanced to 10-0 (5) with a unanimous decision over Mexico’s hard-trying Sergio Garcia Herrera (7-4). The scores were 78-74 and 79-73 twice.

Photo credit: Mikey Williams: Top Rank via Getty Images

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