Last year, Jesse “Bam Rodriguez” became the youngest champion in boxing, when he fought Carlos Cuadras, and beat him via unanimous decision to capture the vacant WBC junior bantamweight title. Bam earned the respect of many that night when he stepped up on late notice and moved up in weight for his opportunity to be a champion and won.
He furthered that respect when he made his first title defense 4 months later against Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, arguably the hardest hitter at 115. Many thought that the heavy hitting Sor Rungvisai would stop the smaller Rodriguez, but instead, Rodriguez won via stoppage.
Three months later, Bam again defended his title in a unanimous decision win over battle tested Israel Gonzalez. Many thought he looked less impressive in this win, but after fighting three hard fights in 7 months, he was likely just exhausted.
Now, Bam has moved back down to 112 and is now hoping to become the youngest two-division champion in boxing when he faces Christian Gonzalez this evening for the vacant WBO title.
Cristian Gonzalez has a record of 15-1 and is ranked #2 after 9 consecutive victories. For Gonzalez, this is an opportunity to change his life.
But Bam is looking to start 2023 in the same fashion that he started 2022, with a statement. Can Bam advance to 18-0 with a win over Cristian Gonzalez and become San Antonio’s first two division champion or will Cristian Gonzalez spoil his plans? Find out tonight on DAZN at 8:00p.m. Eastern time/5:00 p.m. pacific.