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Mexican Quartet Announced For World Cup Boxing Series
"4-Man Lightweight Tournament"
World Cup Boxing Series (WCBS) has finalized plans for its
inaugural “4-Man Lightweight Tournament,” presented by Roy
Jones Jr. (RJJ) Boxing Promotions, with the semifinals on
February 24th at Palenque De La Expo in Ciudad Obregon,
Sonora, Mexico.
At its 59th annual World Boxing Council (WBC) Convention in
Mexico City this past November, the WBC committee approved
to sanction the WCBS’ “4-Man lightweight Tournament,”
created by CEO Terry Hollan and matchmaker Guy Taylor.
“We are extremely grateful for the WBC to sanction our
upcoming ‘4-Man Lightweight Tournament,’” Taylor said. “The
semifinals will be held February 24th, the championship
final June 2nd. The World Boxing Council will crown the
winner of the ‘4-Man Tournament’ as its new WBC Latino
Lightweight Champion.”
“The WBC hopes to be able to sanction more World Cup Boxing
Series tournaments and create great regional champions to
enter our world rankings and achieve their goals with the
WBC,” WBC Latino President Alberto Guerra commented.
The WCBS “4-Man Tournament” semifinals match-ups have been
announced: Luis “Koreano” Torres (14-0, 9 KOs) vs. Rodolfo
“Rudy” Flores (14-5, 6 KOs), Alberto “El Alacan” Ruiz (11-4,
8 KOs) vs. Isai “Gaga” Hernandez (11-2-2, 7 KOs).
Semifinal’s action will be contested in 8-round bouts, 10
rounds for the championship final. The WCBS will also
feature one “overtime” round, if needed, to declare a winner
in the event of a draw upon the conclusion of the scheduled
distance.
WCBS will also be offering a “Fight of the Night” and
“Knockout” bonuses to each contestant through the duration
of its “4-Man Lightweight Tournament.”
The 20-year-old Torres is the favorite going into the
tournament. The southpaw is a former WBC Youth Silver
lightweight champion who has cruised through his first 14
opponents since making his pro debut in 2017. His last fight
was an impressive 10-round decision over Guillermo Avila
Godinez (19-11) this past December in Ciudad Obregon.
Flores, 26, has won two of his last three fights. His most
notable wins have been by decision versus Jesus Acosta
Zazueta (16-5-2) and Jairo Lopez (18-5).
Last August, Ruiz upset 15-0 WBC Latino Lightweight Champion
Jair Valtierra by way of a fifth-round knockout to capture
the crown.
Hernandez has won five of his last six matches, excluding a
“no-contest” in his last fight against 13-0-1 Francisco
Lopez, in which Hernandez was holding his own until the
fight was stopped due to an accidental headbutt.
“To have undefeated Luis Torres, Mexico’s top-rated
lightweight prospect, and the last one to be WBC Latino
champion, Alberto Ruiz, in this tournament should show
everyone the quality fighters we are providing,” Taylor
concluded. “Any man can be defeated on any given night and
that’s the beauty of a tournament model.”
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