Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez kept everyone waiting for Friday’s weigh-in, though already after he made weight.
The two-division and reigning WBO flyweight titleholder ran late for what was later revealed as the ceremonial weigh-in ahead of his unification bout versus IBF champ Sunny Edwards. Rodriguez tipped the scales at a fit 111.6 pounds, while Edwards was 111.6 pounds.
Their two-belt unification bout will headline a four-fight DAZN show this Saturday from Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.
Edwards (20-0, 4KOs) fights in the U.S, the first time as a pro. The 27-year-old Brit attempts the fifth defense of the IBF title he claimed in a rousing April 2021 twelve-round victory over two-tour beltholder Moruti Mthalane at York Hall in Bethnal Green. Saturday will mark his third unbeaten that Edwards has faced during his title reign, including a twelve-round points win over Andres Campos who was 15-0 ahead of their June 10 title fight at London’s OVO Arena Wembley.
The win over Campos’ marked Edwards’ first bout under Matchroom Boxing, with whom he signed to land unification bouts at the weight.
San Antonio’s Rodriguez (18-0, 11KOs) answered the call once his jaw healed up after his WBO flyweight title win over Cristian Gonzalez.
The sport’s first Gen-Z boxer to win a major title, Rodriguez became a two-division titlist despite spending the final six rounds with a broken jaw in his bout versus Gonzalez in his San Antonio hometown.
Rodriguez previously held the WBC junior bantamweight title, which he won in a 12-round unanimous decision over former titleholder Carlos Cuadras last February at nearby Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix. Rodriguez was due to fight at flyweight and took the fight on six days’ notice, replacing former lineal champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai whom he subsequently obliterated inside of eight rounds last June in San Antonio.
A points victory over Israel ‘Jiga’ Gonzalez last September 17 in Las Vegas was the final 115-pound affair for Rodriguez, who vacated the title to compete at flyweight.
The evening’s co-feature pits former unified junior featherweight titlist Murodjon Akhmadaliev and unbeaten contender Kevin Gonzalez in a scheduled 12-round WBA title eliminator.
Uzbekistan’s Akhmadaliev (11-1, 8KOs) was 121.6 pounds for his first fight since his WBA/IBF title reign ended with an April 8 split decision defeat to Philippines’ Marlon Tapales in San Antonio. Culiacans Gonzalez (26-0-1, 13KOs) checked in at 121 pounds for his second career twelve-round bout.
The winner will become the WBA mandatory challenger to the December 26 undisputed championship between Tapales, who now holds the WBA and IBF titles, and WBC/WBO champ Naoya Inoue in Tokyo.
Main undercard, DAZN, 8:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. local time
Galal Yafai (5-0, 4KOs), Birmingham, England, 111.8 pounds vs. Rocco Santomauro (22-2, 6KOs), Apple Valley, California, 111.4 pounds—10 rounds, flyweight
Peter McGrail (8-0, 5KOs), Liverpool, England, 121.6 pounds vs. Ja’Rico O’Quinn (16-1-1, 8KOs), Detroit, 121 pounds—10 rounds, junior featherweight
Before The Bell prelims, DAZN/Matchroom YouTube, 5:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. local time
Arturo Popoca (11-0-1, 7KOs) Sahuayo de Morelos, Mexico, 123.4 pounds vs. Carlos Mujica (8-3, 2KOs), Las Vegas via Caracas, Venezuela, 122 pounds—8 rounds, junior featherweight
Junaid Bostan (7-0, 6KOs), Rotherham, England, 155.2 pounds vs. Gordie Russ II (6-0, 6KOs), Detroit, 155.2 pounds—8 rounds, junior middleweight
Albert Gonzalez (6-0, 2KOs), Perris, California, 127.2 pounds vs. Alexis Eduardo Molina (9-2-1, 5KOs), Guadalajara, Mexico, 126.2 pounds—6 rounds, featherweight
Joe McGrail (7-0, 3KOs), Liverpool, England, 125.8 pounds vs. Edgar Ortiz Jr. (8-4-2, 4KOs), Phoenix, 123 pounds—6 rounds, featherweight
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox