On May 4 (May 5 Japan time), Top Rank held an event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In the co-main event, WBO World Featherweight Champion Rafael Espinoza (Mexico), undefeated in 26 fights with 22 KOs, defended his title for the third time in a 12-round bout against No. 10 contender Edward Vazquez (USA), who came in with a record of 17 wins (4 KOs), 2 losses, and 1 no contest. Espinoza secured a TKO victory at 1:47 of the 7th round.
This was Espinoza’s third title defense and Vazquez’s second world title challenge. In the opening round, the towering 185 cm Espinoza used his height advantage—15 cm taller than Vazquez—to control the distance, aiming jabs and uppercuts from both hands. Vazquez tried to roll his upper body and look for openings to get inside, but the distance was too great.
In round two, during close exchanges, Espinoza landed a left uppercut followed by a left to the body and a right uppercut. When he regained distance, he mixed in jabs and straight rights effectively. In round three, Vazquez came forward with a high guard targeting the body, but Espinoza countered with sharp right uppercuts. A straight right to the body from Espinoza visibly halted Vazquez’s movement.
In round four, Vazquez pressed forward, but Espinoza met him with short combinations and followed up with straight punches when the distance widened. Vazquez’s movement slowed after absorbing a right body uppercut, and he began to accumulate damage under Espinoza’s relentless combinations.
In round five, after absorbing a right uppercut, Vazquez was forced to retreat. Espinoza followed up with a left to the body, causing Vazquez to curl up and go into full defensive mode. Espinoza, sensing the end, unleashed a rapid-fire combination to try to finish the fight, but Vazquez managed to withstand the assault.
In round six, during close exchanges, Espinoza landed a series of uppercuts with both hands. At mid-range, he connected with right uppercuts, straight punches, and body shots. Vazquez had no answer to Espinoza’s skillful and varied attack.
In round seven, a right uppercut from Espinoza sent Vazquez backward once again. Espinoza then landed a damaging left to the body before swarming him with a flurry of punches. Trapped in the corner and offering no return fire, Vazquez was clearly overwhelmed. Seeing enough, referee Harvey Dock (USA) stepped in and stopped the bout. Espinoza claimed a dominant victory and successfully defended his title for the third time.
If Naoya Inoue moves up to featherweight, a showdown with Espinoza feels like it could be the kind of matchup that brings out the very best in Inoue’s abilities!
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