Jason Moloney doesn’t really differentiate Saul Sanchez from any other opponent he has already faced or will encounter down the road.
It’s not meant to dismiss his upcoming challenger; rather, he views him as the same threat as everyone else he’s fought to get to this point. Even more is at stake for this one, as Australia’s Moloney attempts the first defense of his WBO bantamweight title.
“I’m prepared for the toughest fight of my life,” Moloney told BoxingScene.com. “Being the champion, I know that every opponent I face is going to be extremely hungry to try and take my belt away from me but I’m so hungry and know that I’ve got so much more to achieve.
Moloney-Sanchez is among the supporting bouts to the January 13 Artur Beterbiev-Callum Smith light heavyweight championship on ESPN from Videotron Centre in Quebec City, Canada.
The bout is the first for Moloney (26-2, 19KOs) since his twelve-round, majority decision win over Vincent Astrolabio last May 13 in Stockton, California. The downtime was attributed to the full healing process for a fractured hand suffered in that fight, though Moloney fought through that pain for more than eight rounds to claim a major title on his third try.
Sanchez (20-2, 12KOs) has back in his groove after a stunning June 2022 upset, split decision defeat to Eros Correa in Ontario, California. The setback snapped a six-fight win streak that included a first-round knockout of then-unbeaten Ja’Rico O’Quinn in September 2021. Sanchez—a 25-year-old California native—has since won two straight, most recently in an eight-round decision over unbeaten Filipino prospect RV Deniega last October 12 on the road in Tokyo, Japan.
“I’ve done a lot of study on Sanchez and I see many areas that I can exploit,” insisted Moloney. “I worked my whole life to win this belt and there’s no way I’m letting someone take it from me.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. X (formerly Twitter): @JakeNDaBox