In a thrilling night of boxing in his home state of Texas, Floyd “Kid Austin” Schofield (15-0, 11 KOs) triumphantly defended his WBA International Title. He overpowered Las Vegas’ Haskell “Hackman” Rhodes (28-5-1, 13 KOs) in a 10-round lightweight bout. Despite being knocked down thrice—twice in the seventh round and once in the eighth Rhodes showed grit. Schofield suffred a deep cut on his left cheek from an accidental head butt in the ninth round. The judges unanimously scored the bout 100-87.
A prestigious lineup of guests graced the event, including Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya, Golden Boy Partner and International Hall of Famer Bernard Hopkins, Congressman Joaquin Castro, Texas State Representative John Lujan, San Antonio Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran, former WBA World Champion Joshua Franco, WBO World Champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, and other esteemed Golden Boy Fighters.
Further adding to the night’s drama, Joseph “JoJo” Diaz Jr. (33-4-1, 15 KOs) from South El Monte, California, registered a unanimous decision victory against Harbor City, California’s Jerry Perez (14-3-1, 11 KOs) in a welterweight showdown that stretched over all 10 rounds. Diaz Jr.’s vigorous performance was met with roaring applause from the audience. The judges’ scores read 97-93, 97-93, and 98-92 in favor of Diaz Jr.
In the female unification world championship fight of the evening, Marlen Esparza (14-1, 1 KOs) of Houston, Texas, added the WBO Flyweight World Title to her treasure trove of accolades that include the WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine World Championship belts. The Unified Flyweight World Champion handed Gabriela Alaniz (14-1, 6 KOs) from Buenos Aires, Argentina, her first defeat after an intense 10-round face-off. The judges’ majority decision, with scores of 99-91, 95-95, 97-93, meant Esparza collected all the belts at the end of the night.
Romanian-American prospect Eric Tudor (9-0, 6 KOs) of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, triumphed over Reggie Harris Jr. (7-4, 3 KOs) from Ann Arbor, Michigan, in an eight-round super middleweight duel that also went the distance. Despite the intense back-and-forth exchange, Tudor emerged victorious, flooring Harris Jr. in the first round and dislodging his mouthpiece in the seventh. The judges agreed on Tudor’s win, scoring the bout 78-73, 77-74, 78-73.
In the preliminary fights, Tristan Kalkreuth (11-1, 8 KOs) from Duncanville, Texas, secured a second-round knockout against Joe Jones (13-9,10 KOs) from Jersey City, New Jersey. The match was set for six rounds of intense heavyweight action.
The opening bout of the night was a scheduled six-round cruiserweight clash between Houston’s Darius “DFG” Fulghum (6-0, 6 KOs) and Jeremiah Curtright (2-2, 2 KOs) from Saint Charles, Missouri. Fulghum emerged victorious via a third-round TKO at the 2:17 mark.