At the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Turki Al-Sheikh staged “Latino Night” – “Mexico vs The World”, an event headlined by the return of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, who managed to reclaim the WBC super middleweight world title with his victory over Christian Mbilli. On the undercard, Rafael “El Divino” Espinoza (29-0, 25 KOs) successfully defended his WBO featherwight world title, defeating Ricardo Blandon (21-7) by third-round technical knockout.
The Fight
There was no feeling-out process, as Espinoza immediately went to work with his punishing jab, taking advantage of his long reach, while the Nicaraguan challenger tried to press forward. Both fighters repeatedly targeted each other’s bodies without holding back.
In the second round, Espinoza maintained control of the center of the ring and continued to snap his jab into his opponent’s forehead. Blandon tried to respond, but appeared slower and more predictable than the champion, who, by contrast, began adding more weapons to his arsenal, including hooks and uppercuts when he had his opponent against the ropes.
Midway through the third round, as the two fighters were exchanging punches, the referee noticed a nasty cut around Blandon’s left eye and called in the ringside doctor. The action was halted, as the challenger’s eye did not appear to be in suitable condition for the fight to continue.
Espinoza has therefore successfully completed the fifth defense of his WBO featherweight title. Who will be his next opponent? Will he attempt to unify the belts or move up in weight in search of new challenges? Only time will tell.