San Antonio’s Medina set for showdown
After two straight wins against lesser opponents, Rick Medina is ready to step up in competition.
The 23-year-old San Antonio super featherweight returns to the ring against fellow contender George Acosta on Saturday at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, Calif.
Medina (15-1, eight knockouts) is coming off back-to-back victories over Steve Garagarza and Juan Antonio Lopez in the past year following the only loss of his career to Raymond Ford.
The only loss for the 27-year-old Acosta (16-1, three KOS) came in 2019 to Ruben Torres.
“A win here sets me up for bigger fights, likely a 10-rounder against a top-10 contender,” Medina said. “Beating Acosta, who has an impressive record, will boost my career significantly and prove I am a top-tier fighter.”
The scheduled eightround bout, on the undercard of Brandon Benitez (20-2, eight KOS) vs. Rigoberto Hermosillo (14-4-1, nine KOS) for the WBO/NABO featherweight title, will be televised live at 9 p.m. on Fox Deportes.
The full card will stream on Fightstars.network. A tape-delayed version will be shown on Estrella TV.
Champ Rodriguez to defend title
Two-division world flyweight champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (18-0, 11
KOS) of San Antonio is scheduled to defend his 112-pound WBO title against IBF champ Sunny Edwards (20-0, four KOS) of London on Dec. 16 at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Ariz.
The unification bout headlines an eight-bout Matchroom Boxing card on DAZN.
Injury forces Tanajara out
Hector Tanajara of San Antonio was forced to withdraw from his planned junior welterweight fight against Andy Cruz on the Regis Prograis-devin Haney undercard Saturday at the Chase Center in San Francisco, according to published reports.
An undisclosed injury prompted Tanajara to pull out of their scheduled 10-round bout.
The fight was billed as a crossroads bout for the 26-year-old Tanajara (21-1-1, six KOS) against Cruz (1-0), who recently turned pro after defecting from Cuba, where he compiled a 140-9 record and won a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Schofield is still unbeaten
San Antonio lightweight Floyd Schofield (16-0, 12 KOS) remained undefeated with a firstround TKO of Ricardo Lopez Torres (17-8-3, 12 KOS) of Mexico this past Saturday on the Ryan Garcia-oscar Duarte card at the Toyota Center in Houston.
Schofield, ranked No. 9 by the WBA, knocked Lopez down four times before referee Joseph Rodriguez halted the bout at the 1-minute, 51-second mark.
Golden Gloves set for February
The 2024 San Antonio Regional Golden Gloves amateur boxing tournament is scheduled for Feb. 16-18 at the Second Baptist Church Community Center on the East Side.
Male and female boxers 17-40 are eligible to compete, with the winners in each weight division advancing to the state tournament in Fort Worth in March.