Flyweight contender David Jimenez notched another victory on his path back towards another world title opportunity.
Jimenez knocked out former world titleholder Ganigan Lopez in round seven Friday night at the Redondel de Toros de Palmares in Alajuela, Costa Rica.
The 31-year-old Jimenez, who is rated No. 6 by The Ring at 112 pounds, improved to 14-1, 11 knockouts.
The southpaw Lopez did find success early in spots, but Jimenez was just too busy and too strong for Lopez to maintain a consistent offense. As the fight progressed, Jimenez would break down Lopez, throwing and landing combinations to the head and body. As each round passed, Lopez’s punch output dropped dramatically.
During the seventh round, as both stood in the pocket, Jimenez unleashed a vicious right uppercut that dropped Lopez to the canvas. Lopez remained seated on the canvas as he was counted out.
Jimenez, who resides in Cartago, Costa Rica, stated there is a possibility his next fight could be against Sunny Edwards, who lost his IBF world flyweight title to Jesse Rodriguez in a unification fight on December 16 in Glendale, Arizona.
“We are not (in boxing) for gimmicks, but, more so, for the love of the sport that we train everyday,” said Jimenez after the fight in an interview that appeared in the publication La Teja. “We are in the sport because of discipline and sacrifice and I’m ready to fight 12, 13, or 14 rounds.
“Next is a fight against Sunny Edwards.”
Edwards is rated No. 2 by The Ring at 112 pounds.
In his previous fight on July 21, Jimenez stopped Rosendo Hugo Guarneros after the seventh round. The win over Guarneros took place almost six months after Jimenez lost by unanimous decision to WBA world flyweight titleholder Artem Dalakian.
In July 2022, Jimenez won a hard-fought majority decision over Ricardo Sandoval, who is currently rated No. 7 by The Ring.
Lopez, who resides in Mexico City, falls to 38-13, 19 KOs. Lopez had not fought since February 18, defeating journeyman Carlos Vado Bautista by split decision.
The 42-year-old lost by knockout to junior flyweight contender Carlos Canizales in March 2022.
Lopez won the WBC world junior flyweight title in March 2016, defeating Yu Kimura by decision. He would make one successful defense before losing the title to Kenshiro Teraji by majority decision in May 2017.
Friday’s card was promoted by Ernesto Sandoval, who runs FightClub Promotions.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com
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