FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONS LEO SANTA CRUZ & ABNER MARES SCORE VICTORIES TO SET UP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP REMATCH IN 2018
WBA Featherweight Leo Santa Cruz (34-1-1, 18 KOs) landed a hard right hand and the referee had seen enough, stopping the fight and giving Santa Cruz a TKO win over Chris Avalos (27-5, 20 KOs) in the eighth round at StubHub Center on Saturday, October 14, 2017.
Abner Mares did his part and won his bout in the co-main event while Santa Cruz took care of business to set up a potential matchup early next year.
Santa Cruz said he wanted to please the fans and give them a brawl but he was fighting the wrong fight.
“He (Avalos) was very tough,” said Santa Cruz. “Once my dad told me how I could stop him easily, I boxed him more and got the stoppage.”
Santa Cruz dominated Avalos from the opening bell, rocking Avalos several times and landing with pinpoint accuracy. Avalos landed a hard uppercut but Santa Cruz continued to land punches at will.
In Round 4, Santa Cruz almost drops Avalos with a barrage of punches. The wobbled Avalos made out of the round but took a lot of punishment.
Santa Cruz said he thought the ref was going to jump in during that round but he let them continue.
“I thought I had him in the fourth round,” said Santa Cruz. “I gassed out a little bit but I got my air back later.”
While Avalos showed a strong chin, the onslaught continued with Santa Cruz rocking Avalos with multiple combinations in Round 8. Referee Thomas Taylor stepped in to stop the bout after a hard straight right by Santa Cruz.
Avalos was very upset with the stoppage and said there was no reason to stop this fight.
“We were fighting the whole time,” said Avalos. “I wasn’t hurt like the referee thought. I want to fight for the title again.”
With the rematch on the horizon, Santa Cruz and Mares looked sharp and ready for the highly anticipated battle of Los Angeles.
“I want Abner Mares,” said Santa Cruz. “I said if we both win, we’re going to fight. I’m ready to fight him in Los Angeles in the beginning of next year.”
Header photo by Stephanie Trapp
