Joshua Franco faces Andrew Moloney for the third time on Saturday, in the main event of a Top Rank on ESPN card at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tulsa, Oklahoma (ESPN, ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET).
Franco (17-1-2, 8 KOs), 25, of San Antonio, Texas, won the WBA “regular” junior bantamweight title with a unanimous decision victory over Moloney (21-1, 14 KOs), 30, of Australia, in June 2020. In a rematch last November, Franco suffered a bad cut over his right eye and the fight was ruled a “no contest” because the referee ruled it had happened by an accidental head-butt, and the fight hadn’t gone long enough for an official decision.
Also on the card, Muhammad Ali’s grandson Nico Ali Walsh, of Chicago, makes his professional boxing debut against Jordan Weeks (4-1, 2 KOs), 29, of Lexington, South Carolina. Ali Walsh is just 21, but one big question lingers — can he fight?
On another boxing card on Saturday, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California (Showtime, 10 p.m. ET), WBO bantamweight champion John Riel Casimero faces WBA “regular” titleholder Guillermo Rigondeaux in the main event.
Casimero (30-4, 21 KOs), 32, of the Philippines, has won six consecutive fights by stoppage, including a third-round KO of Duke Mich in his last outing in September 2020. Rigondeaux (21-1, 13 KOs), 40, of Cuba, is a former junior featherweight world champion who lost to Vasiliy Lomachenko in 2017. Since that defeat, he has won three consecutive fights, including a split decision victory over Liborio Solis in February 2020 to win the WBA belt.
In the co-main event, Gary Antonio Russell (18-0, 12 KOs), 28, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, faces Emmanuel Rodriguez (19-2, 12 KOs), 29, of Manati, Puerto Rico, in a 12-round battle for the vacant WBA interim bantamweight title.
At The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys of the NFL, welterweight sensation Vergil Ortiz Jr. takes on the biggest challenge of his career so far against former title challenger Egidijus Kavaliauskas in the main event (DAZN, 8 p.m. ET).
Ortiz (17-0, 17 KOs), 23, of Dallas, hasn’t fought past the seventh round so far in his career. In February, Ortiz scored a seventh-round KO against former world titlist Maurice Hooker in a dominant performance.
Kavaliauskas (22-1-1, 18 KOs), 33, of Lithuania, lost via ninth-round TKO against Terence Crawford when he challenged for the WBO welterweight title in December 2019, but recovered with an eighth-round TKO of Mikael Zewski in September 2020.
Follow along throughout the night for live results from all three boxing cards.
Fight in progress in Tulsa, Oklahoma: Arnold Barboza vs. Antonio Moran, 10 rounds, junior welterweights
Fight in progress in Frisco, Texas: Roger Gutierrez vs. Rene Alvarado, 12 rounds, for Gutierrez’s WBA “regular” junior lightweight title
Fight in progress in Carson, California: Rau’shee Warren vs Damien Vazquez, 10 rounds, bantamweights
Results:
In Tulsa: Jason Moloney earns decision victory over Greer
In a crossroads fight, Jason Moloney pounded out a 10-round unanimous decision over Joshua Greer Jr.
Two judges scored it 98-92; the other 96-94. The win keeps Moloney alive in the 118-pound division. He was coming off a seventh-round KO against Naoya Inoue in an October title fight.
For Greer, the future is far less certain. He hasn’t won since a decision over Antonio Nieves in October 2019. The 27-year-old from Chicago was upset by Mike Plania in June and then settled for a draw vs. Edwin Rodriguez in his last outing.
Greer (22-3-2, 14 KOs) started strong, but Moloney (22-2, 18 KOs) took control in Round 3. The Australian’s twin brother, Andrew, fights Joshua Franco in the main event. Moloney is ESPN’s No. 7 boxer at 118 pounds.
In Tulsa: Morrison outlast Haynesworth for unanimous decision
Trey Lippe Morrison, the son of former heavyweight title challenger Tommy Morrison, was extended the distance for the first time in a shutout decision over Don Haynesworth.
The hometown favorite from Tulsa won 60-54 on all three cards in his first action since April, a sloppy fight that featured more brute than skill.
Morrison (18-0, 17 KOs) and Haynesworth both winged big punches but rarely met their mark. Both heavyweights seemed to tire easily, with Haynesworth, 38, completely gassed by the end of the rounds. At 288.6 pounds, Hayneworth (16-7-1, 14 KOs) was an immobile target but Morrison, 31, still couldn’t find him with his power shots on most occasions.
Haynesworth, a native of New Rochelle, New York, has now lost four straight.
In Frisco: Alvarado scores first-round TKO of Vazquez
Felix Alvarado, the IBF junior flyweight champion, made quick work of his late-replacement opponent in a non-title bout.
Vazquez, brought in just this week, came out aggressively and landed some shots, but Alvarado swarmed him in the second half of the opening round and dropped Vazquez with a clubbing right hand. Alvarado returned to his feet, but the referee deemed he couldn’t continue, prompting the stoppage at 2:50.
For Alvarado (37-2), it was the 32nd knockout of his career, and his 16th in Round 1. It was also the 19th straight victory for the 32-year-old Nicaraguan, who had been scheduled to defend his belt against Erick Lopez. Lopez had to withdraw because of visa issues. Vazquez (10-5-2), of Puerto Rico, has lost five of his last six bouts.
In Frisco: George Rincon defeated Nikolai Buzolin by unanimous decision after eight rounds of a junior welterweight fight by scores of 80-72, 80-72 and 80-72
In Tulsa: Balderas stops Cervantes in impressive performance
Karlos Balderas, once one of the most highly touted prospects in boxing, made the most of his fresh start.
The 24-year-old scored a second-round TKO of Fidel Cervantes, battering his opponent from the opening bell. He landed a brutal left hook followed by a flurry of punches in Round 1 that dropped Cervantes (9-2-1, 4 KOs) and then staggered him again late in the round.
The 30-year-old from Kansas never regained his senses and absorbed a beating in Round 2 before the referee stopped the fight at 2:03.
In December 2019, Balderas (10-1, 9 KOs) was upset via a sixth-round KO against Juan Rene Tellez and parted ways with PBC afterward. The Southern California native regrouped during the long layoff. He linked up with renowned trainer Buddy McGirt and signed with Top Rank.
“I’m back and better than ever,” Balderas said after the fight. “Even with this victory, I have things to work on. I’m going straight back to the gym to get ready for the next one. … I’m only getting started.”
Now in his second act, Balderas is hoping to fulfill his vast potential that’s been touted since he fought his way into the lightweight quarterfinals at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
In Tulsa: Cortes demolishes Servania in first-round KO
Andres Cortes scored a devastating first-round KO of Genesis Servania in the biggest win of his young career.
Cortes landed a right hand followed by a left hook that sent Servania, who is from the Philippines, crashing against the ropes. Servania, a former title challenger, attempted to get up but was in no shape to continue.
Cortes (15-0, 8 KOs), who resides in Las Vegas, will likely step up again in his next fight. Servania (34-3, 16 KOs) dropped a decision to Oscar Valdez in a 2017 world title fight at 126 pounds.
In Tulsa: Bell dominates Cortez for one-sided victory
Albert Bell scored a shutout unanimous decision over Julio Cortez, winning 80-72 on all three judges’ scorecards.
Bell (19-0, 5 KOs), a native of Toledo, Ohio, was coming off an eight-round decision win over Manuel Rey Rojas in April. The 130-pounder easily outboxed Cortez (15-3, 11 KOs), using his significant height and reach advantage to keep the Ecuadorian on the outside.
Bell might not pack much pop, but at 6 feet, he’s very tall for the 130-pound division, and he has the boxing skills to go along with it. He appears to be inching closer to a top-10 ranking in a stacked weight class. Now he just needs the step-up opponent to prove he’s at that level.
In Tulsa: Nova outpoints Pumicpic for unanimous decision win
Abraham Nova returned from an Achilles tear with a successful performance, earning a unanimous decision victory over Richard Pumicpic in the ESPN+ opening bout.
Nova (20-0, 14 KOs) was stunned late in the first round but settled into the fight to win by scores of 79-73, 78-74 and 79-73. The power-punching 130-pounder was competing for the first time since a June 2020 decision win over Avery Sparrow.
Pumicpic (22-12-2, 7 KOs), a native of the Philippines, has lost four of his past five fights.
Still to come:
Tulsa (ESPN/ESPN+)
Carson, California (Showtime)
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Title fight: John Riel Casimero vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux, 12 rounds, for Casimero’s WBO bantamweight title and Rigondeaux’s WBA “regular” bantamweight title
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Title fight: Gary Antonio Russell vs. Emmanuel Rodriguez, 12 rounds, for the interim WBA bantamweight title
Frisco, Texas (DAZN)
Source:ESPN
