Esneidy Rodriguez Wins WBC Silver
Atomweight Title Against Sana Hazuki
by Ron Scarfone
September 13, 2024
(SEPT 13)
Esneidy “La Leona” Rodriguez won the World Boxing Council (WBC)
Silver atomweight title against defending champion Sana Hazuki
on Saturday, September 7. The event was at the Auditorio Benito
Juarez in Veracruz, Mexico.
Veracruz is a state in Mexico which
is where Rodriguez resides. Hazuki is from Fukuoka, Japan.Hazuki
was rated the No. 6 atomweight contender by the WBC whereas
Rodriguez was rated No. 11.
The atomweight division has a weight
limit of 102 pounds. Atomweight does not exist for professional
male boxers. The event was televised by TVMas which is a public
television broadcaster that serves Veracruz. The event was live
streamed and recorded on the YouTube channel of TVMas. The time
stamp for Rodriguez vs. Hazuki is 1:08:00.
Hazuki was the more experienced boxer with double the number of
rounds and fights, but Rodriguez had the advantage of fighting
in her home state and country.
Rodriguez is 25 years of age and
is about 15 years younger than the 40-year-old Hazuki. Two of
Hazuki’s previous notable fights in 2021 and 2022 were both
against Yokasta Valle who was International Boxing Federation (IBF)
minimumweight champion at the time. Hazuki lost by unanimous
decision in both of her fights against Valle.
The minimumweight
division has a weight limit of 105 pounds. Hazuki won the vacant
WBC Silver atomweight title in September 2023 against Denise
Castle. The fight was stopped after the end of round five due to
a hematoma over Castle’s left eye. Hazuki won two non-title
fights this year and was making her first title defense against
Rodriguez.
It was an intense fight between these two legitimate contenders.
The intensity continued into the tenth and final round. It was
somewhat of a close fight, but the decision was fair. The total
scores of the judges were 97-93, 97-93, and 96-94 all in favor
of Rodriguez by unanimous decision. Rodriguez remains undefeated
as a pro with a record of 8-0-1, 0 KOs. Hazuki is now 12-9-1, 6
KOs. Rodriguez is closer to getting a shot at a world title. The
WBC world atomweight champion is Tina Rupprecht of Germany.
Rupprecht is considered to be the best in the atomweight
division.
