Rey Vargas easily outpointed overmatched Leonardo Baez on the Canelo Alvarez-Caleb Plant card Saturday in Las Vegas.
A long layoff and transition to a new weight class had no adverse affect on Rey Vargas.
The former WBC 122-pound titleholder, making his debut as a full-fledged 126-pounder, picked apart a game, but overmatched Leonard Baez to win a unanimous decision on the Canelo Alvarez-Caleb Plant card Saturday at the MGM in Las Vegas.
Vargas (35-0, 22 KOs) used his long jab and sharp power shots — including many to the body — to keep his fellow Mexican at a distance that was favorable for the taller fighter, who also was the much better boxer.
Baez (21-5, 12 KOs) worked his way inside at times — and landed some solid shots — but he couldn’t do it consistently enough to win rounds. He could take solace only in the fact he survived to hear the final bell.
Thus, the final scores were no surprise: 99-91, 100-90 and 100-90. Boxing Junkie also scored the fight 100-90, a shutout.
Rey Vargas (left) had his way with Leonardo Baez. Joe Camporeale / USA TODAY Sports
Vargas hadn’t fought in more than two years, in part because of a broken leg he suffered while on a training run last year. Now, with a featherweight victory under his belt, a title shot could be on the horizon.
Vargas jumped to the top of the WBC rankings by virtue of his former title, which puts him in position to challenge long-reigning champion Gary Russell Jr.
Junior featherweight champ Emanuel Navarrete faces Uriel Lopez in a non-title bout Saturday in Mexico City.
Emanuel Navarrete doesn’t like idleness. Five fights last year is evidence of that. And who could blame him? Good things happen then the 25-year-old Mexican steps into the ring.
Navarrete made his breakthrough in December 2018 at Madison Square Garden, where he challenged rising junior featherweight titleholder Isaac Dogboe in his first fight outside Mexico. When it was over, his career had changed completely.
The 5-foot-7 Navarrete used his considerable height and reach advantage to pick apart the short, squat Dogboe and win a unanimous decision and the title even though he injured his right hand early in the fight.
“The best man won tonight,” Dogboe said graciously afterward.
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ON SATURDAY
Who: Emanuel Navarrete (31-1, 27 KOs) vs. Uriel Lopez (13-13-1, 6 KOs), 10 rounds, junior lightweights Where: TV Azteca Studios, Mexico City TV: ESPN and ESPN Deportes (8 p.m. ET)
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Navarrete was even better in the rematch five months later in Tucson, Arizona. He outworked Dogboe, put him down twice and stopped him in the 12th and final round to retain his 122-pound title. A new, young Mexican star had arrived.
“To all the fighters at 122 pounds,” he said immediately after the knockout, “I tell them that if they want my title, then they can come and try and take it.”
Well, four fighters – Francisco De Vaca, Juan Miguel Elorde, Franansico Horta and Jeo Santisima – gave that a try last year and none of them survived to hear the final bell. The fact he made five title defenses (including the Dogboe rematch) in one year is unheard of these days. The fact he won all five by KO is just downright impressive.
Next up is countryman Uriel Lopez, who will face Navarrete in a non-title junior lightweight – both weighed in at 127 pounds — bout Saturday night at the TV Azteca Studios in Mexico City on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.
Emanuel Navarrete has won 26 consecutive fights. Photo / Zanfer Promotions
Some champions have expressed reticence to fight in an empty venue, which is required because of the coronavirus pandemic. Not Navarrete. He is going places quickly. And the only way to do that is to fight. A lot.
“He’s a real warrior and he loves nothing better than to fight,” Top Rank CEO Bob Arum said during his 2019 run. “And he doesn’t care who the opponent is. He’s going to go in and fight.”
Navarrete probably won’t stay at 122 much longer but has said he wants to unify the titles against either Murodjon Akhmadaliev, who holds two belts after outpointing Daniel Roman in January, or Rey Vargas. Akhmadaliev’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, has expressed interest in a showdown.
After that? No one is safe. He has an eye on featherweight and junior lightweight stars Shakur Stevenson, Josh Warrington, Leo Santa Cruz and Oscar Valdez.
“Including the belt I have right now at junior featherweight, I want to conquer two more divisions,” Navarrete said. “That’s what I see myself in three to five years, becoming a three-division champion.”
Andrew Cancio, who recently left Golden Boy Promotions, reportedly has signed a multi-fight deal with Top Rank.
Andrew Cancio will soon be back to working two jobs.
The former junior lightweight titleholder and Southern California day laborer has reportedly signed a multi-fight deal with Top Rank, just two months after he was released by former promoter Golden Boy for voicing his discontent with the company before his knockout loss to Rene Alvarado on Nov. 23.
Cancio, who crafted one of the best feel-good stories of last year by upsetting then titleholder Alberto Machado twice, took his ex-promoter to task for what he perceived was a lack of a promotional boost. After Cancio’s loss to Alvarado via seventh-round stoppage, Golden Boy promptly dropped the fighter from its roster.
“He wanted bigger purses and he wanted to fight in bigger venues,” Golden Boy president Eric Gomez told ESPN. “He didn’t think Golden Boy was providing that for him so we released him and wish him all the best. I hope he finds what he’s looking for.”
Cancio’s new promotional deal with Top Rank means he joins a packed stable of 130-pounders, including titleholders Miguel Berchelt and Jamel Herring, as well as contenders Carl Frampton and Oscar Valdez.
Rey Vargas, a longtime Golden Boy fighter, has signed a new deal with rival outfit Premier Boxing Champions, according to The Athletic.
The talent drain continues at Golden Boy Promotions.
Rey Vargas, a junior featherweight titleholder who has spent most of his professional career under Oscar De La Hoya’s promotional banner, has entered a multi-fight deal with Premier Boxing Champions.
The news was first reported by The Athletic.
Sources: 122-pound champion Rey Vargas has signed a multi-fight deal with PBC. Vargas was previously campaigning under the Golden Boy Promotions banner. Vargas and Brandon Figueroa could be matched at some point down the road. Stephen Fulton in the mix for PBC at 122, too
Vargas is the latest fighter to leave the Golden Boy stable. Andrew Cancio, a former junior lightweight titleholder, was recently cut from the lineup after he voiced his discontent with his promotional handlers. The Athletic also reported that Cancio has signed a multi-fight deal with Top Rank.
A tall, rangy junior featherweight, Vargas has a chance to defend his WBC belt against PBC stablemates Brandon Figueroa, Stephen Fulton, and possibly current bantamweights Guillermo Rigondeaux and Luis Nery.
