Serrano triumphs over Téllez and keeps her unified featherweight titles
Unified featherweight champion Amanda Serrano successfully defended her titles against replacement Reina Tellez in Puerto Rico, her home turf, for the first time in almost five years. The match was arranged after Serrano’s original opponent, Erika Cruz, presented an unusual result in her pre-fight drug screening. Undefeated American Olympian Téllez was called up only 15 days prior. Unfortunately, after two weigh-ins, he came in 0.6 pounds over the limit, making him ineligible to capture the title; however, the bout proceeded with Serrano’s consent. Despite stepping in on short notice, missing weight, and typically competing at bantamweight, Téllez showed some impressive skills. In the middle rounds, he suffered a cut under his right eye and inflicted significant swelling on Serrano. Nevertheless, Serrano remained dominant throughout the match and was visibly pursuing a knockout in the tenth and final round, much to the audience’s enjoyment. She aimed to tie Christy Martin’s record for knockouts by a female fighter, which stands at 32. That achievement would have to wait, as Téllez displayed remarkable grit. The final scores were 98-92 and 97-93 on two scorecards, all in favor of Serrano, who advanced her record to 48-4-1 with 31 knockouts. Téllez faced his first professional loss, bringing his record to 13-1-1 with 5 KOs. Stephanie Han battled through a challenging opening round against the renowned Hall of Famer Holly Holm while defending her WBA lightweight title. Han eventually found her rhythm and was landing punches at a rate of 3-1. An accidental heads-up collision resulted in a severe cut on her forehead. The ringside physician instructed the referee to pause the match and review the scorecards. Referee Luis Pabón called off the bout at 1:44 of the seventh round. At the stoppage, the judges scored it 69-65, 69-64, and 68-65, all favoring Han, who remains the WBA lightweight champion. She now holds a record of 12-0 with 3 knockouts. Holm’s record now stands at 34-3-3 with 9 knockouts. Both Han and Holm expressed interest in a rematch to take place in either of their hometowns. Puerto Rico vs. Canada: Krystal Rosado squared off against Tania Walters in a six-round women’s bantamweight clash. For Rosado, it was a quick turnaround just two months after her inaugural defeat to former IBF champion Shurretta Metcalf. Rosado, being 15 years younger, was too quick and too agile for Walters. The judges scored it unanimously 60-54, all in favor of Rosado, who improved her record to 8-1, 2 KOs. Walters dropped to 7-4, 2 knockouts. Former IBF bantamweight titleholder Ebanie Bridges made her comeback after a two-year hiatus from boxing and the recent birth of her child with fellow former world champion Kell Brook. She faced the lesser-known Alexis Araiza in the opening match of the main card for the Serrano-Téllez event in San Juan on January 3, 2026. Despite suffering a nosebleed in the third round, Araiza seemed to have the upper hand in the bout’s first half, outpacing and hitting Bridges more often. There was a notable lack of defense throughout the match, and it should be highlighted that this was the only women’s bout on the card with two-minute rounds, which naturally accelerated the action. Bridges did everything possible to shift momentum in the second half, becoming more aggressive and increasing her output. The judges declared the result as 80-72 and 78-74 twice, all favoring the unexpected winner, Araiza. Her record now stands at 4-2, 1 knockout. Bridges’ record is now 9-3, 4 KOs. Post navigation
Published: 2026-01-04 08:51:00
source: fightnews.com
