Bam Rodriguez Dissects and Stops Srisaket Sor Rungvisai!
For his latest in-ring assignment, WBC super flyweight champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (16-0, 11 KO’s) staged the first defense of his title. The highly touted boxer faced the challenge of Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (50-6-1, 43 KO’s) under the hot lights of the Tech Port Arena located in San Antonio, Texas. There was no doubt that Rodriguez, 22, carried a great deal of momentum into this bout.
Just two fights ago, Bam was highly ranked and competing within the light flyweight division. That was until Rungvisai contracted COVID-19, forcing him to withdraw from his then upcoming title fight with Carlos Cuadras. When presented with the opportunity to fight for the vacant WBC strap, the talented Texan accepted the match with zero hesitation. Once in the ring with Cuadras, Rodriguez out-boxed him en route to a clean unanimous points victory. Trained by the well-known and respected chief second Robert Garcia, Bam is now facing Rungvisai in the first defense of that belt.
Having successfully recovered from his stint suffering the effects of COVID-19, the accomplished Thai fighter hopped in the ring with the champ. At the age of 35, Rungvisai had every intention of adding the young upstart to his list of conquered accomplishments. For the better part of the past decade, Rungvisai has remained a consistent force in the division. Among his career-best highlights are two victories over four division champion Roman Gonzalez as well as a win over WBA super flyweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada.
ONE-WAY ACTION
The first half of the opening round saw Rodriguez bedevil Rungvisai with his swift feet. Toward the middle portion to the end of the round, Bam began clipping the challenger with clean hooks and head shots. The champ outclassed Rungvisai in every possible way during the second. He was faster, sharper, threw more shots and landed almost exclusively all of the memorable shots. Rodriguez continued to dominate in the third, while being very mindful of body work.
Not only was his constant shifting of angles pretty to watch, it was a puzzle Rungvisai could not solve. The Thai fighter continued to fight aggressively but ineffectively. While eating an equal dosage of damaging blows to the head and body, Rungvisai appeared to show signs of frustration. His malcontent manifested itself in a warning from Mark Cay-lo not to trip the Texan. Rungvisai did little outside of devour leather, get spun and fluster in the sixth.
WINNING IN STYLE
Appropriately, a sharp left hook took the challenger off his feet in the seventh. The Thai boxer popped up quickly as the knock down was assisted by his foot slipping. Sadly for Team Rungvisai, he was severely thumped and tenderized once back upright. His head was snapped from left to right with regularity, as his resistance seemed to be visibly wilting.
While Rodriguez was not selling out on his power shots, he was lighting up his foe with an endless river of clean, sharp and very accurate shots. Then in magnificent fashion, during the eighth, Bam Rodriguez hurt then corralled Rungvisai to the ropes. Once there, he pummeled a nearly unresponsive challenger, forcing ref Cay-lo to put an end to the massacre. This was a sensational win for the young fighter who alerted the super flyweight division, and the two below, that he was coming.
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By: Bakari Simpson
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