Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez believes he’s in the right place with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom to become an undisputed flyweight champion. For now, he is preparing to defend his WBC title against former 108-pound champ Pedro Guevara at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on Saturday November 9th, live worldwide on DAZN. Rodriguez (20-0 13 KOs) penned a new deal with Matchroom ahead of his 21st fight in the paid ranks, where he joins fellow superstar and Philly ace Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis on the top of the stacked card, as Ennis defends his IBF welterweight title against mandatory challenger Karen Chukhadzhian.
Bam’s clash with his WBC mandatory challenger Guevara (42-4-1 22 KOs) is his seventh as a Matchroom fighter after impressing Hearn with a KO win in Fresno, California in October 2021. The San Antonio star has been at the world level ever since that night, taking on Carlos Cuadras at late notice to win the WBC super flyweight title, and taking out two more of the ‘Four Kings’ in Srisaket Sor Rungvisai and Juan Francisco Estrada to crash in to the top ten of the pound-for-pound rankings – a long way from how he felt before putting pen to paper with Hearn. “At one point no-one wanted to sign me,” said Rodriguez. “Eddie gave me an opportunity to fight on his card in Fresno, and by the next fight I was signed to Matchroom and that was the Carlos Cuadras fight, and from that point, my life has changed.
“Loyalty is everything in boxing, if it’s not there, you don’t have anything. Eddie gave me the opportunity and I know that he’s looking out for me, and that’s why I feel at home at Matchroom. “I have to get past this fight first, but the goal is to go for undisputed in 2025. I’m taking this fight as seriously as ever, training my ass off like any other fight, we’re going to handle business and then we can talk about 2025.”
“We’re delighted that Jesse has extended his deal,” said Hearn. “His rise into the top ten of the pound-for-pound list is something we’re very proud to be a part of – and there is still so much more to come from him. Jesse only wants the biggest and best fights, and I don’t see anything stopping him from winning more World titles at higher weight classes.”
“From the moment Robert brought Jesse to us, we knew what a special fighter he was,” said Mr Akihiko Honda, president of Teiken Promotions. “Having worked with him throughout his entire career, we are so pleased to see his success and to receive his recognition as one of the current pound-for-pound greats. We are thrilled to extend our partnership with Matchroom Boxing and are looking forward to many more big nights to come in the career of Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez.”
Bam and Boots headline a stacked night of action in Philadelphia, with former champion Raymond ‘Savage’ Ford returning to action up at super featherweight when he takes on Orlando Gonzalez, light heavyweight talent Khalil ‘Big Steppa’ Coe takes on Manuel Gallegos, Ernesto ‘Tito’ Mercado makes his Matchroom debut and Austin Williams returns to the ring over eight rounds at 160 pounds against Gian Garrido.
Boots Promotions duo Dennis Thompson and Ismail Muhammad return to the ring, and there’s a debut on the card for the hotly-touted Zaquin Moses, the cousin of pound-for-pound superstar Shakur Stevenson, stepping through the ropes for the first time over four rounds at super featherweight.
