Tonight at 10:30 pm ET on ESPN, Oscar Valdez and Scott Quigg meet in what was supposed to be a world title fight, but now is not after Quigg failed to make weight on Friday.
Still, WBO featherweight titleholder Valdez (23-0, 19 KO) and Quigg (34-1-2, 25 KO) should provide an exciting matchup, as their styles, at least on paper, mesh for what should be good action. The 27-year-old Valdez has already become a reliable action star in his brief pro career, and Quigg is generally at his best when made to fight, too.
The co-feature will see a pair of super featherweight prospects risk their undefeated records, as Andy Vences (20-0, 12 KO) takes on Erick De Leon (17-0, 10 KO) battle in a bout set for 10 rounds, with a minor WBO title on the line.
Wil Esco will be on the round-by-round coverage for tonight’s fights. Join us!
RESULTS
- OSCAR VALDEZ def. SCOTT QUIGG by unanimous decision (117-111, 117-111, 118-110)
- ANDY VENCES and ERICK DE LEON fight to majority draw (95-95, 96-94 De Leon, 95-95)
ROUND BY ROUND
OSCAR VALDEZ vs SCOTT QUIGG
Round 1: Valdez comes out with a left hook that Quigg blocks. Now Valdez follows up with two jabs followed by another left hook. Valdez comes forward again, this time to the body, and Quigg hasn’t really gotten started yet. Valdez gets in the left hook upstairs this time and Quigg tries to press forward and find an opening. Valdez gets in a four punch combination to the head and body, then rocks Quigg with a big right hand. Valdez smells blood and tries to follow it up but once he sees Quigg recover he goes back to boxing. Valdez 10-9.
Round 2: Valdez comes out with a monstrous body attack which hunches Quigg over! Now Valdez mixes in some uppercuts and is really outworking Quigg and landing some good shots. Another big left hook to the body lands for Valdez. Quigg won’t make it to the later rounds if he keeps taking this many clean shots to the body early. Valdez continues to mix it up to the head and body and Quigg is already showing some signs of distress, although he’s still marching forward. Now Quigg tries two punches to the body which only partially land. Valdez 10-9, 20-18.
Round 3: Quigg trying to get to work now, walking in on Valdez and trying to move his hands. Good left hook to the body lands for Valdez. Quigg trying to impose his size advantage on Valdez but Valdez’s sharper punches are keeping him ahead. Valdez takes a shot but returns three more and the pivots to center ring. Better round for Quigg but I still think Valdez takes it. Valdez 10-9.
Round 4: Freddie Roach wants Quigg to start throwing more punches while he’s walking Valdez down. Valdez continues to get off his combinations first though, and keeps getting in that left hook to the body. Quigg backs Valdez to the ropes and tries a couple of hooks. Quigg misses on several punches but then gets in a left hook. Valdez moving on his feet and gets in some jabs but Quigg is getting closer and closer as he absorbs Valdez’s shots and continues to walk forward. More hard left hook land downstairs for Valdez. I think Quigg might’ve just edged this round as his aggression is starting to wear on Valdez. Quigg 10-9, 37-49.
Round 5: Valdez comes out with a flurry, now Quigg tries to walks through it and get in a couple shots of his own. Valdez targets the body and head but Quigg’s weight advantage seems to be doing him some favors as he walks through the shots and lands two left hooks on Valdez’s head. Valdez looks like he’s starting to fade just a little and that’s encouraging to Quigg. Now Quigg shakes up Valdez with a left hook to the chin! Quigg knows he has Valdez hurt and tries to pour it on. Quigg does have a cut over his left eye though! I think Quigg takes this round because he visibly hurt Valdez. Quigg 10-9.
Round 6: Valdez comes out with another quick flurry of punches but Quigg is just walking through fire and putting the pressure on Valdez. Valdez now looks like he’s bleeding from the mouth badly. Quigg is really wearing on Valdez just by staying in his face and walking through all of Valdez’s punches. Quigg just throws Valdez to the ground and he’s sternly warned for it! Valdez unloads a number of punches but I think he’s already hit Quigg with his best shots and Quigg is still taking them well and pushing Valdez back. I think Valdez wins this round but I don’t know if he can keep fighting Quigg off at this pace. Valdez 10-9, 49-46.
Round 7: Quigg comes out right after Valdez, running right through Valdez’s punches, continually pressing him back to the ropes at this point. Quigg missing weight and being noticeably larger than Valdez in the ring is clearly playing a big role in this fight. Valdez’s mouth looks a bloody mess — it’s bad. Quigg gets off a flurry on Valdez’s face as he has him on the ropes. Quigg 10-9.
Round 8: Quigg gets in a hard left hook, but Valdez answer back with one of his own. Quigg gets in a right hand and Valdez continues to have blood pouring out of his mouth. Quigg keeps trying to time a right hand over Valdez’s jab and he’s coming close and closer to landing it. Now Quigg gets in a left hook upstairs. Valdez tries to fight Quigg off of him but Quigg is just like a freight train, plowing straight through everything Valdez throws at him. Right hook lands for Quigg to end the round. Quigg 10-9, 76-76.
Round 9: Quigg is realyl imposing his size on Valdez, now targeting the body to break Valdez down. Valdez is fighting valiantly but he’s taking some real damage from a bigger man in there. Valdez gets in a chopping right hand, then comes with a four punch combination, but Quigg isn’t going anywhere! Hard left hook to the body lands for Valdez! Quigg smiles. Now Quigg lands a right hand that knocks Valdez back to the ropes. Valdez pourts on several more punches! This is a bloody action fight. Valdez 10-9.
Round 10: Quigg comes forward again to start the round and Valdez tries to fight him off with a dozen punches! Valdez showing all kinds of heart in this fight. Hard left hook lands for Quigg after Valdez misses. Quigg applying the pressure again and has Valdez along the ropes. Now Valdez gets in a left hook upstairs. Both fighters have taken a lot of punishment in this fight. Valdez gets in a combination but Quigg tries to follow him back with some shots of his own. I think Valdez outworked Quigg in this round. Valdez 10-9, 96-94.
Round 11: Both fighters are looking really beat up at this point. A true Stub Hub special! Quigg comes out looking for a knockout as instructed by trainer Freddie Roach. Both fighters trading shots but Valdez is just throwing more. Now Valdez throws another long flurry just to keep Quigg off of him. Valdez’s conditioning is on point for this fight! Quigg has Valdez back on the ropes and Valdez holds on. Quigg lands a left hook upstairs and strafes Valdez along the ropes. Hard left hook lands for Quigg! Two more hard shots lands for Quigg! Low blow puts Valdez on the ground! Referee calls a timeout for Valdez to recover. It was a clearly low blow. Valdez comes out from the time out and hurts Quigg right away with a big left that shakes him up! Valdez 10-9.
Round 12: Freddie Roach urges Quigg to give him everything he has left in this final round! Valdez comes out with a short combination, then lands a clean left hook to the body. Quigg’s nose look all kinds of fucked up — it might be broken. Both fighters trade shots and this is a savage fight! Blood everywhere! Quigg gets Valdez back to the ropes but Valdez promptly holds on. Valdez throws another flurry and my, oh my! He’s had to dig really deep just to combat the size disadvantage. Valdez is winning this fight, but I have the feeling it’ll take a toll on him in the long run. Valdez 10-9. I’ve got it for Valdez 116-112.
ANDY VENCES vs ERICK DE LEON
Round 1: Vences comes out try to establish a jab but hasn’t fought the mark just yet. De Leon pressing forward, trying to overcome his reach disadvantage but, is still responsible defensively. De Leon leaps foward with a lead right hook that grazes Vences. Now Vences lands a hard right hand to the body. Vences gets in another right hand downstairs then a counter left hook upstairs. Vences setting a fast pace early, and it wins him the round for me. Vences 10-9.
Round 2: De Leon comes out stalking forward again, but Vences tries to keep him on the end of a long jab, whether or not it lands. Vences lets go several shots with mixed success, but he’s keeping De Leon from getting off too often. Vences sneaks in a nice uppercut after a jab and De Leon gets back a straight left — his best punch of the fight. De Leon really needs to work his want into closing the distance a little better, because Vences is outworking him by a mile from the outside. Vences 10-9, 20-18.
Round 3: Vences sticking to the game plan, keeping this fight on the outside and using his reach to his advantage. De Leon comes forward behind a high guard and gets in a decent right hook. De Leon misses on a three punch combination but now gets in a straight left hand. De Leon comes back with three punches of his own, staring with a sharp jab. Now De Leon runs right into a straight right hand as he’s eager to close the distance. Another right hand to the body lands for Vences. Vences 10-9.
Round 4: The southpaw De Leon gets in a right hook left hand combination. But even when De Leon gets in some punches Vences gets right back to what he wants to do, controlling the fight from range. De Leon is starting to get a little closer now, though, and starts wining hard shots to make a dent on Vences. De Leon is using his own jab more now and it’s paying dividends, setting up some of his other shots. Vences pushes De Leon through the ropes to end the round but I think De Leon gets on the board with the most damaging shots of the round. De Leon 10-9, 37-39.
Round 5: De Leon comes out fast, trying to land something big quickly. De Leon gets in another straight left hand which is finding the mark more often as this fight wears on. Vences gets in a straight right hand to the body, followed by a sneaky overhand right to the head — two good punches. De Leon runs into another straight right as he walks forward, trying to get himself into punching range. Vences is doing well, controlling most of the action with his footwork and pivoting. Vences 10-9.
Round 6: De Leon still having difficulty closing the distance as Vences catches him with a jab. Right hand lead lands for Vences, knowing De Leon will walk right into his punches and meeting him there. Left hand lead lands for De Leon but Vences gets in one right back. Vences is outboxing De Leon pretty thoroughly. Vences 10-9, 59-56.
Round 7: De Leon is lunging more and more as he’s getting increasingly anxious to get in range and land some shots. De Leon walks into another Vences shot as he comes straight forward. De Leon whiffs on two big shots and Vences touches him with a couple punches, not hard, but scoring. De Leon is basically running right at Vences now, figuring he’ll just apply even more pressure on Vences. Vences is still controlling this fight despite De Leon getting in a couple shots. Vences 10-9.
Round 8: De Leon charges forward but he’s down big on my scorecard. Vences gets in a check left hook, timing De Leon’s forward momentum. De Leon gets in a right hook followed by a straight left. Vences picks off De Leon with a straight jab but De Leon eats it and gets in two hooks upstairs. De Leon seems to have adopted to approach of eating a shot to get in two bigger ones of his own. Three more power shots come from De Leon. Better round for him here. De Leon 10-9, 74-78.
Round 9: De Leon is still come forward strong, looking to get in a lead left hand which he has from time to time. Vences is keeping his composure, though, and while he has this fight on the outside — which is has been mostly — he’s easily taking care of business. Vences has straighter, sharper punches, but he doesn’t seem to have much pop on his right hand. Good thing for him his jab has been mostly good enough to have him up on points. Vences 10-9.
Round 10: Last round. Vences gets in a nice combination early and gets De Leon’s attention. De Leon tries to fire back but Vences is there to take it. Hard right hand lands for De Leon. I think De Leon needs a knockout to win this fight. Nasty straight right hand lands for Vences! De Leon gets in a lead left of his own. Both fighters trade lots of shots to end the fight. Vences 10-9. I’ve got it for Vences, 98-92.