Flying high: Roman Gonzalez becomes three weight world champion

By Peter Wells:

In one of the hottest division's in modern boxing, Roman Gonzalez moved to 40-0(34) with a quality performance against WBC Flyweight champion Akira Yaegashi 20-4(10), scoring a stoppage in the 9th round.

Roman dominated the contest, scoring 2 knockdowns against the brave but outgunned Yaegashi.

Yaegashi opened the contest well behind the jab, but Gonzalez was not deterred from covering up and targeting the body. Yaegashi found his back to the ropes too much in the 2nd, and after a good 3rd round for the Japanese fighter, he was dropped late in the stanza with the left hand that could barely miss all night for Gonzalez.

The action only heated up from that moment onwards, Yaegashi refusing to shy away from an all-out war that fans had anticipated. The power differential however was telling, Gonzalez shaking Yaegashi on several occasions. The left uppercut was particularly potent in Gonzalez's almost faultless display.

The end was nearing, Yaegashi, while still game, was no longer able to fend off the constant assaults coming from 'Chocolito'. Everything was finding it's way through for the pound-for-pound star, and the end finally came in the 9th when a culmination of shots felled Yaegashi, giving the referee the chance to end the beating.

Yaegashi can be proud of his efforts, but he came up very short against a truly special fighter. Gonzalez will now be waiting on tomorrow nights result between Juan Francisco Estrada and Giovanni Segura.
 

Now 7-0(6) and still the WBC Light Flyweight champion, Naoya Inoue defeated Samartlek Kokietgym 17-5(5) via 11th round stoppage.

Inoue dominated the contest before the Thai fighter was stopped on his feet.