WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP COMMITTEE BANTAMWEIGHT INTERIM RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, a petition was filed on Monday, April 12, 2019 on behalf of the representatives of WBO’s #1 Bantamweight contender and reigning WBO Bantamweight Latino Champion, Mr. Ricardo Espinoza, and former Jr. Flyweight World Champion, Mr. John Riel Casimero; and,

WHEREAS, the petitioner considers that the current inactive status of the WBO Bantamweight division held by its current champion, Mr. Zolani Tete, is due to the official dates, venues and completion of the World Boxing Series Tournament; and,

WHEREAS, the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS) Tournament began on October 13, 2018, its completion is determined once they have the winners of each group in their quarter finals, semi-finals and finals that can be prolonged over the span of the year; and,

WHEREAS, the petitioner holds a scheduled WBO International Bantamweight Championship bout date between Mr. Espinoza and Mr. Casimero, he seeks the bout be sanctioned as an Interim WBO Championship bout while the tournament situation is resolved; and,

WHEREAS, the petitioner notes that due to the division inactivity the WBO Bantamweight division rated contenders suffer detrimental damages and opportunity losses, while vying for the WBO Bantamweight Championship Title; and,

WHEREAS, Mr. Tete acquired his title on April 22, 2017, he only defended it on three occasions – November 18, 2017 against Siboniso Gonya, April 21, 2018 against Omar Narvaez, and on October 13, 2018 against Mikhail Aloyan, who was also his first quarter final contender of the WBSS Tournament; and,

WHEREAS, the WBO World Championship Committee recognizes the importance of allowing their champions the discretion to participate in activities they may deem as of career importance, the Committee must also be fair to all of its rated contenders; and,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the WBO World Championship Committee that given all of the above and in the best interests of all our classified Bantamweight contenders and to benefit the Sport of Boxing as a whole, the WBO Interim Bantamweight Championship be approved.

This is a final decision of the WBO World Championship Committee. The decision may be appealed to the Complaint and Grievance Committee, pursuant to WBO World Championship Section 34, which as per Rule 3(e) of the WBO Appeals Regulation, must be submitted in writing to the WBO President within fourteen (14) days of the date of this decision as its sole and exclusive remedy.

Dated in San Juan, Puerto Rico on this 16 of April 2019.

By: Luis Batista-Salas, Esq. – Chairman
WBO CHAMPIONSHIP COMMITTEE

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (Nov. 8, 2018) – On Friday, Nov. 30, at Hard Rock Event Center at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., promoter Kris Lawrence and The Heavyweight Factory, in association with All Star Boxing, return with “Rumble at the Rock III.”

A stacked night of Florida boxing will feature Colombian Bantamweight Champion Yeison Vargas (17-0, 12 KOs) of Cartagena, Colombia taking on WBO Latino Bantamweight Champion Ricardo Espinoza (21-2, 18 KOs) in a 10-rounder for the WBO-NABO Championship.

In the 10-round welterweight co-main event, Derrieck Cuevas (18-0-1, 14 KOs) of Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, will face well-known Miami via Barranquilla, Colombia, veteran Breidis “Khanqueror” Prescott (31-14, 22 KOs).

Yeison Vargas, 28, goes by the ring name “El Mulo” and is the current Colombian Bantamweight Champion. He won the title in his last fight, a KO 2 over Mauricio Fuentes in April. In his three-year professional career, the undefeated Vargas has also held the Colombian Super Bantamweight Championship. He stands 5 feet 5 ½ inches tall and knocks out 71 percent of his opponents.

“I want to thank Kris Lawrence of The Heavyweight Factory and my manager, Angel, for putting this deal together for me,” said Vargas. “They call me the mule ‘El Mulo.’ I am an action fighter with concrete in my fists. I respect Ricardo, but come Nov. 30, I’m going to knock him out on national television. Don’t blink.”

Ricardo Espinoza, 21, goes by the ring name “Hindu.” He will be looking to continue the momentum he started in his last fight by knocking out crowd favorite Daniel Lozano in two rounds last August in Tampa. The nationally televised destruction of Lozano won him the WBO Latino Bantamweight title. Espinoza stands 5 feet 7 inches tall and knocks out 78 percent of his opponents.

“I am coming to Florida once again to show the world that Mexico is above Colombia in boxing, and I am coming to take his undefeated record away,” said Espinoza. “I want to become a household name and shine on Telemundo. I want to thank All Star Boxing and The Heavyweight Factory for putting me on this stage. I will not disappoint. Vargas is going down.”

“I’d like to thank Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood and our friends at All Star Boxing and Boxeo Telemundo,” said Heavyweight Boxing Promoter Kris Lawrence. “We’re very excited to be back home here at the Hard Rock Event Center for our last show of the year. It has been a great year of boxing in South Florida, and I hope the fans enjoy this great event. 2019 will be a great year for boxing.”

“I’m happy to be working with Tutico and Ruben, they are my dear friends,” said Henry Rivalta, Director of Boxing Operations for the Heavyweight Factory. “In this business, we have to work together for the betterment of the sport. The fights are action packed as usual, and we expect a sold-out arena come Nov. 30. I’d like to thank Kris Lawrence for his support of boxing in our community.”

Tickets cost $500, $200, $150 and $100. All seats are reserved and available at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.myhrl.com, www.ticketmaster.com or charge by phone: 1-800-745-3000. Explore the new Hard Rock Event Center with a 360-degree virtual seat map of the venue at www.myhrl.com. Doors open one hour prior to show start time. Additional fees may apply.

The last time WBO Latino Champion Daniel Lozano appeared in the ring, he produced arguably the most meaningful win of his career.

That moment came in the 2017 fall premiere of Boxeo Telemundo. This time around, he closes out the summer season of the series as the Bowling Green, Florida keeps it close to home in a 10-round showdown versus Mexico’s Ricardo Espinoza (20-2, 17KOs). The two collide this Friday at the Brian Glazer JCC Ballroom in Tampa, Florida, airing live on Telemundo (Friday, 11:35pm ET).

While the venue itself is new to the Telemundo circuit, Lozano himself is no stranger to the long-running series. The local favorite makes his 11th network appearance, all of which have been staged in Central Florida. Friday’s bout will be his first since last October, when he closed out a 2017 comeback tour with a 10-round decision over Ricardo ‘Meserito’ Rodriguez.

The victory was one of two on the year where he was able to avenge a prior loss. Three months earlier, he scored a stunning 2nd round knockout of 115-pound title challenger David Carmona,

Both Carmona and Rodriguez handed Lozano decision defeats in a disastrous 2015 ring campaign that saw the 28-year old lose three straight. He now looks to make it three victories in a row, although wins and losses have little to do with his being a series regular.

“It’s never a dull moment when ‘Alacran’ Lozano is in the ring,” Felix ‘Tutico’ Zabala, Jr. of All-Star Boxing told FightNights.com, speaking through an ear-to-ear grin in recalling his boxer’s past bouts. “He’s one of the most popular figures in the Boxeo Telemundo Ford series, because he always leaves it all in the ring, action-packed bouts from bell to bell regardless of the outcome.”

It also helps explain the Standing-Room Only status whenever Lozano (15-4, 11KOs) fights, usually at the nearby A La Carte Pavilion where he has appeared 11 times in his 19-fight career. The next adventure in his career comes at the Bryan Glazer Family JCC, a state-of-the-art 100,000-square foot facility which opened its doors to the public in December, 2016.

Lozano helps christen the locale in a boxing sense, while also welcoming Espinoza to his first career stateside appearance. The Tijuana, Mexico native has won 10 straight—including six straight knockouts—but fights out of his native Mexico for the first time as a pro.

http://fightnights.com/2018/08/06/4062/daniel-lozano-tops-boxeo-telemundo-summer-finale-friday-in-tampa