Rios-Soto DAZN Results: Joel Cordova Edges Jose Quirino

By Jake Donovan

DAZN USA makes its Mexico debut, as the sports streaming service airs live Saturday evening from Auditorio Municipal in Tijuana. Headlining the show is a pair of former titlists in the twilight of their respective careers, as former lightweight title claimant Brandon Rios squares off with local former three-division titlist Humberto Soto in a welterweight clash.

MORE RESULTS TO COME…

Jose Quirino and Joel Cordova picked up right where they left off two months ago, fighting tooth and nail every step of the way in their 10-round heat. A winner was decided this time around, with Cordova prevailing by split decision in Quirino’s Tijuana hometown after being forced to settle for a split draw in this very same venue last December.

The lone dissenting score of 96-94 Quirino was overruled by matching cards of 97-93 in favor of Mexico City’s Cordova (8-4-2, 1KO), who came into the bout believing he needed a knockout in order to win on the road.

As it turned out, all he needed was to not have points deducted, which cost him the decision in their first fight.

Quirino—best known for his knockout win over former flyweight titlist Hernan ‘Tyson’ Marquez in their sequel last year—enjoyed momentum early in this rematch, keeping Cordova at the end of his southpaw jab and carefully picking his spots in mounting an offensive attack.

Cordova took a few rounds to adjust, but was competitive enough early to make an impression on at least two of the three judges. By round four, the 24-year old bantamweight had managed to shift momentum in a big way, closing the gap with relentless pressure in turning a boxing match into a fight.

As the rounds wore on, Quirino was forced to stand his ground and trade perhaps more than he desired. Cordova continually forced a brisk pace in the second half, though perhaps emptying his clip a bit too soon as his corner—and the announcers—seemed to believe the bout was shortened from 10 rounds to eight.

The brief in-ring confusing after the end of the eighth round was sorted out, but it turned out Cordova’s early work was enough to preserve the win. Quirino (20-3-3, 9KOs) sought to surge late, but too many rounds lost in the middle portion of the bout to preserve his 16-fight unbeaten streak.

Joselito Velasquez (8-0, 7KOs) posted perhaps his best win to date, scoring a 5th round knockout of Kevin Villanueva (10-2-3, 9KOs) in their super flyweight contest. 

The action was largely one way, with Cancun’s Velasquez slowly chipping away at his countryman from the opening bell. A steady stream of jabs flowed from the arsenal of the unbeaten prospect, who picked up the pace once sensing Villanueva was beginning to fade.

A series of head shots culminated with a right hand forcing Villanueva off-balance and with only the ropes breaking his fall. The referee correctly ruled the sequence a knockdown, with Velasquez finishing the job two rounds late.

Double left hooks had Villanueva reeling, with Velasquez mixing in body shots for good measure. An ensuing attack from the fast-rising prospect had Villanueva to the point of no longer being able to defend himself. As much was detected by his corner, who climbed the ring apron with white towel in tow.

The official time was 1:46 of round five.

Diego Pacheco prevailed in a four-round unanimous decision over Alberto Aguilar in a battle of unbeaten rookie middleweights. Scores were 40-36 (three times) in favor of Pacheco (2-0, 1KO), a 6’4” 17-year old middleweight from Los Angeles who is co-managed by David McWater and Tim VanNewhouse.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox