Rafael Espinoza returns to defend the WBO featherweight title tonight, facing Sergio Chirino in an ESPN+ main event from the Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
Espinoza (24-0, 20 KO) came out of nowhere last December to upset Robeisy Ramirez and take the WBO belt, and this will be his first defense. He’ll now be the one facing somebody coming pretty much out of nowhere, as Chirino (22-1, 13 KO) hasn’t exactly racked up a sheet of major wins.
That just means we can’t be too sure what we’re getting in this fight, though, and as Espinoza proved six months ago, you can get seriously surprised with fights like this.
Also on the card:
- Andres Cortes (21-0, 12 KO) takes on Abraham Nova (23-2, 16 KO) in a 10-round fight at 130 lbs, which will either establish Cortes as a real contender at the weight, or give Nova new life on that same contenders ladder.
- Troy Isley (12-0, 5 KO) and Javier Martinez (10-0-1, 3 KO) square off in what would have been a ShoBox fight in another time, kind of a make-or-break for Martinez especially, it would seem. The 28-year-old Martinez has been with Top Rank four years next month and they don’t seem to have ever gotten all that high on him. Isley, 25, is younger and has the Olympic bona fides, but similar to Martinez he doesn’t exactly “wow” the audience all the time.
- Floyd Diaz and others are also in action.