Jesse Rodriguez cemented his status as one of the premier fighters in boxing’s lower weights with a stoppage win over a brave Sunny Edwards in Glendale, Arizona.
Many observers were predicting that the flyweight unification bout would be a nip and tuck affair, particularly in the early stages, with Edwards being known for his defensive prowess on the back foot.
However, after a quiet opening round, the contest took a shape that no one expected, with the Brit electing to hold his feet and trade with the bigger, heavier and harder punching Rodriguez, and even managed to get the better of some of the exchanges.
Edwards sustained some concerning eye damage early on, however looked to be coping well and there was little to separate the pair at the halfway stage.
However, ‘Bam’ began to make his physical advantages count from the point on, landing consistent heavy blows to both the head and body of Edwards who was showing signs of fatigue.
Going into the ninth round, ‘Showtime’ was covered in blood and breathing heavy, and there was a sense in the Desert Diamond Arena that the end may not be far away.
And so it proved, with Rodriguez landing a crushing left hand on Edwards with seconds left in the round that sent the 27-year-old to the canvas face first.
He bravely beat referee Chris Flores’ count and made it to the end of the round, however long time trainer Grant Smith had seen enough and decided to pull his man out and thus crowning Rodriguez IBF and WBO flyweight world champion.
The Texan looks unlikely to hold that position for long, however, as he revealed in his in ring interview that the Edwards clash was his last at 112lbs, and that he is now targeting a super fight at super fly against pound for pound star Juan Francisco Estrada.
Despite dishing out plenty of trash talk in the build up, Edwards gave full credit to Rodriguez in his departing speech, making no excuses for the defeat and reassuring his fans that he will be back in the ring soon.
Akhmadaliev blitzes Gonzalez
In his first outing since losing his shock loss to Marlon Tapales back in April, former unified super bantamweight world champion Murojdon Akhmadaliev (12-1, 9 KOs) looked back to his best, dropping the formerly undefeated Kevin Gonzalez (26-1-1, 13 KOs) five times on route to an eighth round stoppage win.
A big statement from the mercurial Uzbek, who put to bed some of the doubts surrounding his credentials that surfaced after the Tapales bout.
Yafai proves too much for Santomauro
Galal Yafai (6-0, 4 KOs) showed plenty of class as he outpointed flyweight gatekeeper Rocco Santomauro (22-3, 6 KOs) over the ten rounds, though did have his chin checked on several occasions by the California native.
A solid evening’s work for the Olympic gold medalist, who continues his progression towards a world title shot.
McGrail stunned by O’Quinn
Blue chip prospect Peter McGrail (8-1, 5 KOs) was dealt a devastating blow at the hands of Ja’Rico O’Quinn (17-1-1, 9KOs), who knocked him out cold in the fifth round of a fight the talented Liverpudlian was dominating.
The defeat will no doubt be a difficult one for McGrail and his backers to process, as he was looking every inch a world champion in waiting before O’Quinn shockingly brought proceedings to a close.
WHAT. JUST. HAPPENED? 😱
After being dominated the entire fight, @GreatLakes_King landed one shot that knocked out @peter_mcgrail
One of the best comebacks of the year.
Watch now at https://t.co/FoiaUucafv#RodriguezEdwards pic.twitter.com/juQx0t4Xab
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) December 17, 2023
Bostan overcomes rugged Russ
21-year-old light middleweight charge Junaid Bostan (8-0, 6 KOs) came through his eight round grudge match against Detroit’s Gordie Russ II (6-1, 6KOs) as was anticipated, but not without having to survive a turbulent third round in which he was shaken on several occasions. The Rotherham favourite managed to regroup and responded well to box his way to a 79-73 decision win on all three judges’ scorecards.
Credit: Ed Mulholland / Matchroom
Elsewhere on the card, Peter McGrail’s brother Joe (8-0, 4 KOs) ensured the night wasn’t a complete disaster for the family as he scored a round two knockout of Edgar Ortiz Jr (8-5-2, 4 KOs) whilst Albert Gonzales (7-0, 3 KOs) dispatched of Alexis Molina (9-3-1, 5 KOs) in the same timeframe.
