Top Rank's first venture into the Banc of California Stadium ended with Emanuel Navarrete dominating Francisco De Vaca, retaining his WBO super bantamweight title.
In the main event of a Top Rank on ESPN card from the outdoor venue, Navarrete made quick work in his second world title defense, stopping De Vaca in the third round. The fight started with Navarrete using his length to land big jabs on De Vaca and some hard uppercuts whenever the champion closed the distance.
The end was fast approaching when Navarrete scored a knockdown in the second round thanks to two consecutive uppercuts that staggered De Vaca and then a hook to send him to the canvas. Although De Vaca got back up and tried his best to fight back, he was unable to even damage Navarrete and the champion continued landing big punches, hurting his opponent in the third round until the referee put a stop to the contest.
This was Navarrete's second title defense since beating Isaac Dogboe late last year to win the WBO title in a stunning upset at Madison Square Garden. Although it is a quick turnaround, Top Rank already has plans for Navarrete to fight again on September 14 on the Tyson Fury vs. Otto Wallin undercard.
Below are the full results of the August 17 Top Rank on ESPN card from the Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles:
- Emanuel Navarrete defeated Francisco De Vaca by KO, round 3, 1:54 to retain the WBO super bantamweight title
- Jessie Magdaleno defeated Rafael Rivera by technical unanimous decision with nine rounds scored (89-81, 89-81, 88-82) to retain the WBC USNBC featherweight title
