LAS VEGAS – Gabriela Fundora retained her IBF flyweight world title with a dominant shutout of Daniela Asenjo, winning 100-90 on all three judges’ scorecards on the Vergil Ortiz Jr.-Serhii Bohachuk undercard Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
Fundora, like her older brother – junior middleweight titleholder Sebastian – is very tall for her weight class, listed at 5-foot-9 and stepping on the scale at 109.8 pounds. Fundora, 22, from Coachella, California, used her height advantage and hand speed well in the opening round, landing crosses and hooks at range while Asenjo, a 33-year-old from Valdivia, Chile, struggled to close the distance.
Fundora continued to confound Asenjo in the second and third rounds. Asenjo tried to jump in at the start of the second, only to get caught. Later, Asenjo circled to her right, though that only put her in the path of Fundora’s southpaw left hand. Fundora, meanwhile, was able to maneuver Asenjo to the ropes and land.
Fundora took advantage of Asenjo’s desperation in the third. When Asenjo missed one, Fundora threw three. Fundora soon scored with a pair of lefts. Later, Asenjo threw wildly and Fundora dodged with ease.
An altercation in the crowd briefly broke out in the fourth round. One male fan knocked another male fan unconscious, and paramedics took the injured man from the arena in a wheelchair.
Back in the ring with the sanctioned action, Fundora remained in firm command in the fifth. Some exchanges at closer range allowed Asenjo to finally land a few, though she ate far more from Fundora in return.
Fundora widened the gap and was emboldened enough that she opened up even more on offense in the eighth and ninth rounds, letting loose with harder and more extended combinations.
The 10th round was just as one-sided as those that came before it, except these two minutes saw Fundora move closer, still firing away, unconcerned about whatever was coming back in her direction.
This was Fundora’s second successful defense of the IBF belt, which she won last October with a fifth-round knockout of Arely Mucino. She defended it in January with a 10th-round TKO of Christina Cruz.
Fundora improves to 14-0 (6 KOs) and is taking aim at the undisputed championship. The other women’s flyweight titleholder is Gabriela Celeste Alaniz, who won the WBA, WBC and WBO belts in April, taking a split decision in her rematch with Marlen Esparza.
“I want to break the record for the youngest undisputed champion,” Fundora said afterward. “I feel like a fight against Gabriela Alaniz would be such an action-packed fight.”
Asenjo fell to 16-4-3 (2 KOs).
And in the opening bout of the main DAZN broadcast, welterweight prospect Joel Iriarte used his showcase to take out the overmatched Miguel Ortiz in less than one round, pummeling Ortiz until the referee stepped in.
Iriarte, who turned pro and signed with Golden Boy Promotions earlier this year, was fighting for the fourth time in five months. Ortiz, meanwhile, hadn’t fought in six and a half years.
Iriarte came out swinging, landing a hard right hand and throwing with such force that Ortiz was being pushed back even when the blows were being blocked. Unfortunately for Ortiz, he was blocking too few of them.
Iriarte began to go to the body to bring Ortiz’s hands down. Then he threw a hook to the body and followed with another hook, this one to the head, momentarily stunning Ortiz. Ortiz attempted a left hook, which Iriarte blocked, and a right hand that made its way to Iriarte’s back.
Iriarte promptly responded, missing with one left hook but landing another. Iriarte soon let loose with a barrage that had Ortiz leaning back over the ropes until the ref stopped the fight with 10 seconds left in the round.
Iriarte, a 21-year-old from Bakersfield, California, is now 4-0 (4 KOs). Ortiz, a 29-year-old from Springfield, Massachusetts, is now 3-2 (1 KO).
Follow David Greisman on Twitter @FightingWords2. His book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
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