At Pechanga Arena in San Diego, CA, on Saturday, WBO World Super Featherweight champion Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete battled it out against 2012 Olympic Silver Medalist and WBO International champion Denys Berinchyk for the vacant WBO World Lightweight title.
In a closely contested bout, Navarrete and Berinchyk traded rounds in a match that saw both fighters have their moments. Berinchyk, fighting southpaw, out-landed Navarrete in the opening round. Navarrete responded by outworking and rocking Berinchyk with a left uppercut in the fourth round. The middle rounds were closely fought, with Berinchyk taking control in the seventh and eighth rounds. Navarrete edged the ninth, but Berinchyk finished strong in the final rounds. The judges scored the bout 115-113, 116-112 for Berinchyk, and 116-112 for Navarrete.
Berinchyk STUNS Navarrete: Watch
The co-main event featured a clash for the vacant WBO interim welterweight title, where southpaw Giovani "Gallo de Oro" Santillan faced Brian "The Assassin II" Norman Jr. Santillan started strong, but a cut on his left eyelid in the second round and pressure from Norman turned the tide. Norman, despite warnings for holding, hurt Santillan in the eighth round and dominated the ninth. In the tenth round, a right uppercut from Norman dropped Santillan, prompting the referee to wave off the fight at 1:33.
Watch the official fight highlights: Watch
2020 Olympic Heavyweight Silver Medalist Richard Torrez Jr. maintained his perfect knockout record by stopping NABF Junior heavy champ Brandon Moore in the fifth round. Torrez had the edge in the early rounds and dropped Moore with a right hook in the fifth. Moore’s corner threw in the towel, ending the fight at 1:39.
Watch the official fight highlights: Watch
Also, local favorite Lightweight Jonny "Magic" Mansour defeated Anel Dudo over four rounds. Mansour outboxed and dominated Dudo throughout the fight, earning a unanimous decision with all scores at 40-36.
Lightweight Alan "Kid Kansas" Garcia scored a dominant victory over Wilfredo Flores, winning every round to earn an 80-72 unanimous decision. Additionally, Featherweight Jonathan "La Roca" Lopez stopped Edgar "El Ciclón" Ortega at 2:39 of the eighth round, and Super Lightweight Emiliano "El General" Vargas defeated Angel Varela when the referee stopped the bout at 1:01 of the sixth round. Super Lightweight Angel Barrera Jr. also secured a victory over Levy ‘Derecho’ Josue Garcia Benitez with all scores at 40-35.
Watch Vargas vs. Varela highlights: Watch
Image Credit: Top Rank