Xander Zayas KO5 Elias Espadas ... Promising Puerto Rican junior middleweight Xander Zayas (14-0, 9 KOs) picked up a fifth-round knockout over Elias Espadas (22-5, 15 KOs). Zayas knocked down Espadas with a left hook in the opening round and finished the fight in the fifth with a sweeping right hand. The bout was the co-feature on Top Rank's Las Vegas show. Espadas, a ten-year pro, was stopped for the first time in his career. Zayas said, “I feel amazing. I’m glad to be back with a strap around me, a regional title, something amazing. It’s special to me to bring my first belt to the island. It's a step closer to my goal of becoming world champion.
“I promise it wasn’t intentional. I wasn’t trying to hit him low. I guess the punches were just landing there. Referee {Russell Mora}, I want to thank him. He gave me a chance. I just listened to the corner, and they told me, ‘Hey, forget about the body.’ Let’s get these head shots and then we’ll start working the body. And that’s what we did in round four on.”
ADDITIONAL RESULTS
Featherweight Jose Enrique Vivas SD 8 Edy Valencia (19-8-6, 7 KOs), Scores: 77-75 Valencia, 77-75 Vivas, and 78-74 Vivas. Mexican got back on the winning track with razor-thin split decision in a fight that was spent mostly in close quarters.
Junior lightweight Andres Cortes (18-0, 10 KOs) UD 8 Abraham Montoya (20-4-1, 14 KOs), Scores: 79-73 (thrice). Las Vegas native Cortes had a satisfying homecoming, outworking the Mexican veteran over eight rounds. Cortes landed 42 percent of his power shots and outlanded Montoya in all but one round. Montoya stunned Cortes against the ropes in the sixth round, but his success was fleeting, as Cortes buckled down in the seventh and eighth rounds to remain undefeated.
Middleweight Troy Isley (7-0, 4 KOs) UD 6 Victor Toney (6-2-1, 5 KOs), Scores: 60-54 and 59-55 2x. U.S. Olympian Isley did not blow away Toney, but he got some hard-earned rounds en route to a convincing points verdict. He faced a little adversity in the fourth round courtesy of a pair of Toney right hands, securing his fourth win of 2022.
Featherweight Duke Ragan (7-0, 1 KO) UD 6 D'Angelo Fuentes (7-1, 4 KOs). Scores: 59-55 2x and 58-56 2x. The U.S. Olympic silver medalist passed the stiffest test of his young career, using a stiff jab and lateral movement to prevail in the battle of unbeatens. Fuentes had a big moment in the second round, momentarily stunning Ragan with a left hook. The Cincinnati native shook off the blow and closed strong down the stretch.
Junior welterweight Omar Rosario (8-0, 2 KOs) UD 6 Esteban Munoz (6-2, 4 KOs), Scores: 58-56 3x. Puerto Rican star Rosario picked up his fourth straight decision with a tougher-than-expected battle against Munoz, who entered the fight riding a four-fight winning streak.
Lightweight Charlie Sheehy (4-0, 3 KOs) UD 4 Juan Castaneda (2-1-2), Scores: 40-36 3x. Bay Area product Sheehy went the distance for the first time as a pro, batting away the constant pressure of Castaneda en route to the shutout decision.
