WBO featherweight champion Rafael Espinoza is speaking about presumably shifting as much as 130 forward of his rematch towards former champ Robeisy Ramirez subsequent month on December seventh on the Footprint Heart in Phoenix, Arizona.
The lanky 6’1″ Espinoza (25-0, 21 KOs) has regarded huge in between fights, and it’s clearly taking rather a lot out of him to drop weight to get all the way down to the skeletal 126 lbs to defend his WBO belt.
Whatever the end result of his rematch with Robeisy (14-2, 9 KOs), it is smart for the 30-year-old Espinoza to maneuver as much as tremendous featherweight as a result of he can get a pleasant payday combating the winner of the rematch between WBO 130-lb champion Emanuel Navarrete and Oscar Valdez.
These two are combating in the primary occasion on the December seventh card on the Footprint Heart. So, that makes it a simple battle to make for Prime Rank to match Espinoza towards the winner.
Newly topped WBC tremendous featherweight champion O’Shaquie Foster stated he needs to battle the Navarrete-Valdez II winner, however his 12-round cut up resolution victory over Robson Conceicao of their rematch on November 2nd was so boring to look at it will be a nasty concept for Prime Rank to let him be subsequent. It could be extra attention-grabbing for followers to have Espinoza battle the winner.
Prime Rank ought to have Foster battle a rematch with #2 WBC Eduardo Hernandez as a result of e their conflict final yr on October twenty eighth was drama-filled, with O’Shaquie needing to come back from behind to attain a Twelfth-round knockout.
“He will get hit flush. He doesn’t have an ideal protection, and that’s going to be an issue for him when he will get in with Robeisy. He is aware of he can damage him. He put him on the canvas earlier than [last year on December 9th, 2023], and I believe he’s going to place him on the canvas once more,” stated Tim Bradley to Probox TV about WBO featherweight champion Rafael Espinoza being susceptible on protection going into his rematch with the two-time Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez on December seventh.
“He will get hit on chin by Robeisy Ramirez. If he’s struggling making weight at 126 lbs, he’ll get damage. Belief me, Robeisy Ramirez needs his belt again. I believe it’s a choose ’em battle, it’s whoever lands first, however I’d guess that Robeisy will land that kill shot, and he’ll finish Espinoza,” stated Bradley.
Espinoza regarded good in his final battle towards Sergio Chirino Sanchez, however he wasn’t combating a expertise like Robeisy. Issues might be very totally different for him when he faces the Cuban Robeisy on December seventh, and this is perhaps the tip of his brief title reign.
“This isn’t a simple battle vs. Robeisy Ramirez. He’s very proficient. Their first battle was an absolute battle,” stated Chris Algieri. “Espinoza needed to pull that one out of the fireplace. He received dropped early [in round five], and needed to rating a knockdown on the finish [in round twelve] to win the battle. ”
It regarded like Espinoza was carried out when he was knocked down within the fifth spherical by Robeisy, however he was lucky the that occurred within the closing seconds of that spherical. Had the knockdown occurred earlier within the spherical, Espinoza would have been knocked out as a result of he was out on his ft after getting again up. All it will have taken is one other huge left hand from Robeisy to complete him.
“Going into the rematch and letting everybody know that principally win, lose or draw, ‘I’m shifting up, means I’ve to maneuver up.’ I’m stunned he’s been capable of keep at this weight for thus lengthy.”
Espinoza regarded like a starved skeleton in his battle towards Robeisy final yr and had the same look in his current protection towards Sergio Chirino Sanchez on June twenty first. It’s received to be exhausting for Espiniza not to have the ability to benefit from the cash he’s making by consuming properly in between fights, and he’s not getting any youthful.
At 30, he can’t proceed to empty all the way down to 126 like this with out it catching as much as him, presumably in his rematch towards Robeisy on December seventh.
“I don’t assume he has any selection. I don’t know what took him so lengthy. This man is large at featherweight,” stated Paulie Malignaggi concerning the 6’1″ Espinoza.
Espinoza might in all probability keep at featherweight a little bit longer if there was a cash battle for him, however there isn’t. There’s nobody there that’s well-known sufficient for Espinoza to get the type of dough that he would by shifting as much as 130 to tackle the Navarrete-Valdez 2 winner or snatching the WBC belt from the light-hitting Foster after which combating a unification match towards Oscar or Emanuel.
