If there was ever any doubt that WBC super flyweight champion Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez 16-0 (11) belonged among the elite, it was dismissed wholesale when he stopped hard-nosed Thai veteran Srisaket Sor Rungvisai 50-6-1 (43) in eight frames at Tech Port Arena in San Antonio, Texas on Saturday night.
Fighting in front of his home crowd, the 22-year-old Rodriguez showed skills and ring nous beyond his years, outboxing and even out-banging the heavy-handed 35-year-old former world champion.
Rodriguez increased the pressure with each progressive round, eventually dropping Sor Rungvisai in the seventh before going in for the kill in the eighth. Referee Mark Calo Oy called a halt to the carnage at the 1:50 mark.
It was a masterclass of power boxing.
“My skills proved a point tonight,” said Rodriguez. “My team knows what I am capable of and what I bring to the table, that’s why we took the fight. I felt I started to break him down after three rounds, the power wasn’t there from him.
“I knew I couldn’t stand there but we came in and put on a show. I was using my angles more, [trainer] Robert [Garcia] kept telling me to do that and I listened.”
Rodriguez jumped up two weight classes for his last fight when he stepped in to face former WBC 115-pound champion Carlo Cuadras 39-5-1 (27) on six days’ notice in February.
But the young gun showed his class, using angles to keep Cuadras turning, dropping him in the third and running away the victor by scores of 117-110 twice and 115-112.
“The Cuadras fight gave me experience and put me here, fighting at home in San Antonio,” Rodriguez said. “I will do whatever Robert says. I am a special fighter, not an average fighter and I am here to stay.
The super flyweight division remains one of the deepest in boxing with Juan Francisco Estrada 42-3 (28) leading the pack and evergreen veteran Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez 51-3 (41) still very much in the mix.
Rodriguez’s promoter Eddie Hearn would be happy to put him in with either of them.
“San Antonio has a superstar on their hands,” the Matchroom Boxing boss said. “Fighters like this come around once in a generation. You are talking about some of the great fighters in Chocolatito, Juan Francisco Estrada – but can you say that Jesse wouldn’t beat them?
“San Antonio should be very proud of this kid. A special talent and it’s all down to the speed that Robert and the team want to go. I think he can unify at any division from 108lbs to 115lbs and he’s got all the tools to become a legend of the sport. He’s a baby, he’s still learning, it was a great turnout tonight and we’re going to get bigger and bigger.”
