Boxing
Bam Rodriguez hunts for three belts of glory vs. “Puma” by Martinez
Published
9 months agoon
Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez predicted victory tonight in his three-fight super flyweight unification fight against champion Fernando “Puma” Martinez in a 12-round bout this Saturday at Ring IV, which takes place on November 22 at the ANB Arena in Riyad, Saudi Arabia.
Riyadh’s hidden gem
Matchroom-promoted WBA and WBO super flyweight champion Rodriguez (22-0, 15 KO) will face undefeated WBA champion “Puma” Martinez (18-0, 9 KO). This is one of the toughest fights of 25-year-old Bam Rodriguez’s career and could attract attention from other fights at the event.
Rodriguez vs. Martinez fights on the undercard between David Benavidez and Anthony Yard on DAZN PPV. The event price for US and Canadian fans is $59.99. In the UK the price is £24.99. DAZN Ultimate is also available, which includes Saturday’s Ring IV: Night of the Champions event.
“This is the guy. He’s everybody’s favorite fighter in boxing. He’s everybody’s favorite fighter on the card, and he’s definitely one of our favorite fighters,” Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn said at tonight’s event last press conference about Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.
Hearn does his job by promoting his player, “Bam” Rodriguez, as “everyone’s favorite player.” Rodriguez is a good player, but calling him “everyone’s favorite” is a bit of a stretch. When it comes to who your favorite player is, it would be difficult to say.
Hearn is betting large
“He’s the only reigning Ring Magazine champion on this card. This guy has done everything. Trainer Robert Garcia and Kevin Rooney have been telling me about this guy for years. With just a week’s notice he [Rodriguez] strengthened two divisions to win [WBC super flyweight] world title by defeating Carlos Cuadras [on February 5, 2022]. He never looked back,” Hearn said of “Bama” Rodriguez.
If 34-year-old Argentine Martinez beats ‘Bam’ Rodriguez on Saturday, Hearn will have to explain what went wrong. He is being prepared for a possible fight with Naoya “Monster” Inoue. Losing to “Pum” Martinez would be a real blow to his career. Martinez looked impressive and stunning Kazuto Ioka in back-to-back fights in Japan.
“Turn on DAZN this Saturday night. You’ll see what Eddie Hearn said about me. I’m a special fighter. I’m going to go out there and prove to everyone once again,” said Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez at today’s final press conference for his unification fight with Fernando Martinez this Saturday.
Rodriguez has looked like pure gold in his last four fights, winning Phumelela Cafu, Pedro Guevara, Juan Francisco Estrada and Radiant Edwards from 2023. What makes these victories more impressive is that ‘Bam’ stopped all four. So it’s understandable why Hearn goes on and on about how great Rodriguez is.
“This is going to be another fantastic performance for me and I’m ready to go out there and do my job,” said “Bam” Rodriguez. “On Saturday night I will emerge victorious and give them back these belts [kids]”
Ken Woods was a senior writer in Boxing News 24 since 2013, covering sports from every angle. With years of reporting from the ring, he delivers fight news, results and analysis that cuts through the noise. Ken’s work consistently focuses on champions, challengers and prospects, giving fans a edged and educated view of the global boxing scene.
Last update: 20/11/2025
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Boxing
Conor Benn Reveals His Pick: Oscar De La Hoya vs Terence Crawford Showdown in Boxing History
Published
1 hour agoon
August 16, 2026
Terence Crawford has been hailed by many as the best fighter of this generation following his retirement, and now WBC welterweight title hopeful Conor Benn has shared how he thinks ‘Bud’ would have fared against six-division world champion Oscar De La Hoya.
Crawford became boxing’s sixth five-division world champion with an iconic win over Canelo Alvarez back in September; joining Thomas Hearns, Sugar Ray Leonard, De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao in that elite and exclusive club reserved only for legends of the sport.
Of that group, only De La Hoya and Pacquiao have gone on to conquer a sixth division, with De La Hoya’s 2004 WBO middleweight world title win over Felix Sturm seeing the Californian become the first boxer to ever become a sextuple champion.
Crawford could have joined ‘’The Golden Boy’ and ‘Pac-Man’ in achieving that feat, having been offered a middleweight world title shot during the aftermath of his triumph over Canelo late last year – a proposal which later fell apart due to a failed doping test by Janibek Alimkhanuly.
Continuing the praise that the Omaha-born southpaw has received since announcing his retirement last December, Benn told Daily Mail Boxing that he would favour the undefeated star to get the better of De La Hoya, if they were to meet in their primes.
Benn also went on to predict that Crawford would retain his unbeaten streak against other greats of the game, picking him to come out on top against each of Mayweather, Julio Cesar Chavez, Pernell Whitaker and Roberto Duran.
Boxing
Robert Garcia Evaluates Terence Crawfords Odds Against Prime Pacquiao
Published
1 day agoon
August 15, 2026
Top trainer and former world champion Robert Garcia has considered the outcome of a fantasy showdown between Terence Crawford and Manny Pacquiao.
The two generational greats reportedly came close to squaring off in 2021, back when Crawford was the WBO welterweight champion and ‘Pac Man’ held the WBA title.
Their unification match never materialised, though, as Pacquiao was scheduled to face Errol Spence Jr before ‘The Truth’ pulled out with a torn retina.
Instead, the Filipino legend ended up losing his WBA title to Yordenis Ugas at a stage when, while still serviceable, he was quite clearly past his best.
Crawford, meanwhile, was hitting top form around this time, just a few fights away from producing arguably a career-best performance against Spence.
He did, of course, manage to stop his welterweight rival in nine rounds, before moving up to 168lbs and becoming a three-division undisputed champion by dethroning Canelo Alvarez last September.
Based on those two performances, coach Garcia has told ESNEWS that he would favour ‘Bud’ to defeat even a prime version of Pacquiao.
“The Crawford that beat Spence – and the Crawford that beat Canelo – would probably beat Manny.”
While Crawford’s prime almost certainly came during his run of eight stoppages at welterweight, it is harder to pinpoint when Pacquiao ultimately reached his peak.
In terms of his most destructive performance at world level, however, many will point towards his second-round finish over Ricky Hatton in 2009.
While facing the ‘Hitman’ at 140lbs, Pacquiao would cement himself as a formidable welterweight champion soon after, dethroning Miguel Cotto with a 12th-round stoppage for the WBO title.
Boxing
Zuffa Boxing Parts Ways with Former World Champion After First Loss
Published
1 day agoon
August 15, 2026
Former world champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk has been left between a rock and a hard place afterhis promotional contract with Zuffa Boxing has been terminated.
The Ukrainian dethroned long-reigning light-heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson in 2018, scoring an 11th-round stoppage that left his opponent with a brain injury.
Gvozdyk then made a WBC title defence before losing to Artur Beterbievwho extended his ruthless surge with a 10th-round finish in their 2019 encounter.
Since that defeat, ‘The Nail’ suffered a unanimous decision loss to David Benavidez in 2024, before entering a perceived 50/50 contest against Radivoje ‘Hot Rod’ Kalajdzic in February.
With both making their Zuffa debut, the two veterans delivered a thrilling battle in which Gvozdyk scored two knockdowns and had built a sizable lead.
In round seven, though, the 39-year-old found himself on the canvas and was ultimately stopped on his feet after getting dropped a second time.
Given his overall performance, one would suspect he had done enough to justify another meaningful opportunity, yet Gvozdyk has since told vRINGe that he will no longer be fighting under the Zuffa banner.
“They terminated the contract in February after a loss. That is, every promoter has the option that if a boxer loses, they have the right to terminate the contract. That’s exactly what they did. After the fight, everyone was saying how great it was. That everything was great. I rested. I started preparing as planned – somewhere around May. And then, around April, they told me I’d received an email terminating the contract.”
This is because his contract has been terminated, while Kalajdzic’s next outing with Dana White’s promotional outfit is confirmed for September 26 against Craig Richards.
As for Gvozdyk, it is difficult to predict what will come next but, at the age of 39, one would suspect that he is close to hanging up the gloves.
Still, he could hardly have been happy to part ways with Zuffa, which also terminated its contract with Robert Meriwether following his defeat to Tony Hirsch Jr in April.
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