Robeisy Ramirez vs Rafael Espinoza Dec. 9 ESPN

[Master]

That was an excellent contest where both fighters fought their hearts out and left it all in the ring.

I thought Espinoza won the majority of the rounds with his punch volume and coming back from that knockdown in round 5 showed his desire to become champion.

Ramirez was loading up, waiting too long and hoping that his big punches would knock out Espinoza. The fact that Rafael scored the knockdown in the last round sealed the win for me. How he makes weight at 6 foot 1 I do not know.

I am now a fan of Espinoza.

[Big J]

What a fight
With a different ref we could have been robbed of a superb contest
A well deserved upset & Espinoza made a big splash in the division

[TitoFan]

That was an excellent contest where both fighters fought their hearts out and left it all in the ring.

I thought Espinoza won the majority of the rounds with his punch volume and coming back from that knockdown in round 5 showed his desire to become champion.

Ramirez was loading up, waiting too long and hoping that his big punches would knock out Espinoza. The fact that Rafael scored the knockdown in the last round sealed the win for me. How he makes weight at 6 foot 1 I do not know.

I am now a fan of Espinoza.

Yeah, one can't help but root for Espinoza. The emotion he showed upon getting the decision was one of those moments that make boxing such a wonderful sport. He definitely earned that decision through blood and guts.

You and me both wonder about how he makes the weight at 6'-1". Skin and bones. It's unavoidable he'll move up one or more divisions in the not-too-distant future.

What a fight
With a different ref we could have been robbed of a superb contest
A well deserved upset & Espinoza made a big splash in the division

Exactly what you and Denilson mentioned. A different ref would've stopped the fight when Espinoza got up, then stumbled into the ropes. In fact, I'd venture to say the vast majority would have. Instead, he let Espinoza continue, and we ended up with a FOTY candidate. Kudos to the ref for that.

[Spicoli]

Really impressed with Espinoza in his 1st defense last Friday night. Sure, it was somewhat of a coronation for the new champ as far as unheralded opponent and #2 ranked Sergio Chirino Sanchez but all you can ask with a heavy favorite is to close the show at first opportunity. Sanchez came in with a shiny 22-1 record but his biggest fight to date was former champ and brick thrower Mauricio Bronco Lara some 6 years ago where Sanchez was busted wide open and stopped early. Champ Rafael Espinoza also got him out in the 4th after a decent stand from his opponent. Espinoza is another "fighter who doesn't fight-use his height" at 6'1 but you cannot deny he makes for fun TV. He was all pressure showing a nasty mix on the inside v Sanchez and gets excellent torque on his leveraged uppercuts. He KNOWS how to use his arms and pick his spots. Also knows how to follow through with a subtle elbow but his inside mix was more than enough. It totally contradicts his physical gifts, and his defense suffers if we're honest, but off his first defense he puts himself squarely in the big picture mix at Featherweight.

Once again Top Rank seemingly positioned Shu Shu Carrington ringside on Friday for some comments and assessment on a current champion. They're under the same promotion and we all know they cannot wait to fast track Carrington into a title shot. But I'd slow my roll there. Just a bit. 126 is pretty stacked. Any mix of the 4 champs is formidable and makes for good quality match ups. Whatever the case Rafael Espinoza will be entertaining as long as he goes. He's clearly got some craft and I don't think he'll go down as a 'fluke' champ. He has some holes, but you're going to chewed up inside if you're not on your game. Looking forward to his next fight no doubt. Possibly v the man he took it from but we'll see.

[Big J]

How freakish would an Espinoza vs. Ball fight look