WBC super-featherweight champion Miguel Berchelt overwhelmed a gutsy Eleazar Valenzuela with a furious sixth round assault in their non-title bout at the TV Azteca Studios in Mexico City on Saturday night.
Afterwards, Berchelt beat the drum for an expected clash with fellow Mexican and the WBC’s No.1 contender Oscar Valdez, a former WBO champion at 126lbs. With both men promoted by Top Rank, there seems to be relatively few obstacles to that fight.
Photo: Zanfer Promotions.
“Now what follows is the expected fight against Oscar Valdez,” said Berchelt (38-1, 34 KOs). “Every fan wants to see that fight and we are ready for that war.
“I felt great, but the altitude Mexico City hit me a little bit. It is not easy to fight in Mexico City, but thank God we got the victory. Eleazar is a tough fighter. He endured everything I threw at him. He gained my respect. My experience as world champion pushed me forward.”
Photo: Zanfer Promotions.
The heavy-handed Berchelt, nicknamed ‘Alacran’ meaning ‘Scorpion’, decked Valenzuela (21-14-4, 16 KOs) in the opening round with a left hook and riddled his compatriot to head and body before the referee’s intervention in the sixth.
Photo: Zanfer Promotions.
On the undercard, rising 140lbs star Omar Aguilar (18-0, 17 KOs) blew away former WBC 130lbs title challenger Dante Jardon (32-7, 23 KOs) in just 55 seconds. Jardon was overwhelmed by an early flurry of blows before a left hook wobbled him and the referee stepped in.
Photo: Zanfer Promotions.
Meanwhile, super-bantamweight Alan David Picasso (14-1, 5 KOs) outscored Florentino Perez Hernandez (14-6-2, 9 KOs). Intriguingly, the fight was scored by SIX judges thanks to the ‘WBC’s Remote Judging System’, used for the purpose of training new officials.
Three judges scored the fight at ringside in the Azteca Studios and three more back in the US watching on television. All six cards were official. Therefore, scores were 80-72 (three cards), 79-73, 79-74 and 78-74.
Main photo: (L) Top Rank/Mikey Williams (R) Zanfer Promotions.