Henry Lebron stays undefeated and hands Juan Tapia first stoppage loss

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Henry Lebron ended more than a year’s layoff with a seventh-round stoppage of Juan Tapia in a junior lightweight fight scheduled for eight rounds on Saturday night. The fight was part of the Amanda Serrano-Reina Tellez undercard at Coliseo Roberto Clemente, which streamed on YouTube prior to the main card starting on DAZN.

Lebron, 21-0 (11 KOs), of Moca, Puerto Rico, was in control throughout, but he began to push for a stoppage in the sixth round as he backed Tapia into the corner, using his busy right jab to exploit his opponent’s bloodied left eye while pivoting out to his right to attack from blind spots. The deficit was too much to overcome for Tapia, as the fight was stopped at 2 minutes and 49 seconds of the seventh.

The stoppage loss was the first for Tapia, 14-5 (5 KOs), of Brownsville, Texas, in his nearly 12-year pro career.

Afterwards, Lebron, who had been signed to Matchroom Boxing before parting ways and signing with Most Valuable Promotions, says he is ready to get in with the top fighters at 130 pounds.

“I want the champions,” said Lebron. “Whoever is ready to fight.”

Chris Echevarria, a popular local fighter, got the win in his six-round bantamweight fight against Gabriel Bernardi, but he may have lost some popularity along the way.

Echevarria, 10-1 (4 KOs), prevailed by unanimous scores of 57-56 over Bernardi, 7-4 (3 KOs), but the decision was booed strongly by a crowd that had been cheering for him at the opening bell. Echevarria, 25, of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, was docked a point in the fifth round for repeatedly losing his mouthpiece, while Bernardi, 29, of Aibonito, Puerto Rico, was surging and landing right hands as his opponent came straight forward without any head movement. Sensing the desperation of the situation, Echevarria finished the fight strongly in the sixth, and may have prevailed off of that margin.

Alexis Chaparro had to go the distance for the first time as a pro but emerged victorious in a battle of unbeaten middleweights.

Chaparro defeated Augusto Leal by unanimous decision, winning by two scores of 60-54 and 58-56 on the third, moving his record to 7-0 (6 KOs).

Leal dropped to 3-1 (1 KO).

Chaparro, a 25-year-old from Ridgewood, New York, flirted with a knockout victory in the final round, using his reach to land strong right hands from distance but was unable to put his shorter opponent down.

Chaparro is managed by Amanda Serrano.

Elise Soto, an unbeaten featherweight prospect and Amanda Serrano protege, scored a dominant victory in her Puerto Rico debut, stopping experienced journeywoman Liliana Martinez at 1 minute and 58 seconds of the second round. 

The stronger Soto backed up Martinez in the opening round, rocking her along the ropes with right hands and hooks. Martinez, trying to hold on and slow her opponent’s aggression, looked ready to go near the end of the first round. She started the second round trying to box and catch Soto coming forward with 1-2 combinations, but the pace was too much to handle as Soto hammered the defenseless Martinez against the ropes, forcing the referee to stop the fight.

Soto, now 10-0 (9 KOs), grew up in New Jersey but is now based in Carolina, Puerto Rico. She competed at the national level of USA Boxing’s tournaments, making it to the final round of the 2022 USA National Championships.

Abner Figueroa Cotto, 8-0 (1 KO), remained undefeated in his pro campaign, defeating Edwin Rodriguez by unanimous decision in their six-round bantamweight fight. The scores were 60-54 on one card and 58-56 on the other two as Figueroa earned a win over a durable journeyman who was coming off a draw against former title challenger Saul Sanchez in his previous fight.

Yandiel Lozano, a silver medalist at last year’s Youth World Championships, moved to 3-0 in his pro career, outfighting Johniel Ramos Cotto to a unanimous decision win. The scores were 60-54 on one card and 58-56 on the other two as Ramos, who, like Lozano, is 19 years old, dropped to 3-3 (1 KO) as a pro.

Lozano, from Caguas, Puerto Rico, turned pro last July.

In the opening bout, Caleb Tirado had a successful professional debut, stopping fellow debutant Justin Hill at 1 minute and 59 seconds of the second round in their bantamweight fight. Tirado, 24, of Arecibo, Puerto Rico, had represented Puerto Rico on the international amateur scene, falling short in the 2024 Olympic qualification tournaments.

Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ryansongalia@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.