The WBO weight weight champion, Rafael ‘El Divino’ Espinoza (26-0, 22 kos) will defend against Edward Vázquez Classified #11 (17-2, 4 kos) on the Naoya Inoue vs. card. Ramon Cardenas on Sunday, May 4 at the T-Mobile in Las Vegas.
Vázquez has two close losses in the fights that was close to winning against Raymond Ford and Joe Cordina. Many fans had Vázquez hitting Cordina in his fight on November 4, 2023 in Monte Carlo, but the judges felt that the British fighter had done enough.
Espinoza vs. Vázquez is a fight good enough to be the main event on this card because it is more competitive in the role than the head of Inoue-Cardenas. That is a mismatch.
Rafael’s size advantage
The Espinoza of 6’1 ″ comes from a arrest of injuries in the sixth round of the former WBO champion of 126 pounds Robeisy Ramírez on December 7 of last year. That was Espinoza’s second victory over the twice Robeisy of the Olympic gold medalist, and a sign that it is too good for Cuban talent.
Vázquez, 5’7 ″, will have to find a way to deal with the height of the crankshaft spinoza because it will be bombarded if you cannot find a strategy. His lack of power will make it more difficult because he would need that to defeat the champion much higher. It is not that Espinoza uses his height to fight from the outside.
What makes it so difficult is their long arms and the way their shots become, making them difficult to see. Espinoza also has a high work rate, which creates even more difficulties. However, it can be injured, as we saw in his first fight with Robeisy when he was dropped late in the fifth round. He was saved from being knocked out by the end of the round.
“Rafael Espinoza is an imposing pen weight with power and skills to be a world champion in the coming years, and we are excited to show it in a weekend so significant for Mexican boxing,” said promoter Bob Arum “Edward Vázquez is a difficult and determined challenge that his injection knows to change everything. T-Mobile Aren of attention with the incomparable Naoya Inoue in this historic May five card. ”
Last update on 03/13/2025