Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela held back tears when he saw his name and face emblazing the marquees that scatter across the Strip upon arriving last week for his Sunday night fight. There was only one thing better than the beginning of fight week for the former WBA super lightweight champion.
How it ended.
Boxing at lightweight at the Chelsea inside the The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Valenzuela punctuated Zuffa Boxing’s first local card outside the Meta Apex by knocking out Edwin De Los Santos — by whom he was once stopped. His counter right hook caught the Dominican flush in the temple and sent him to a knee (after which he popped him with a light short left) and then to the canvas, prompting a 10-count from Thomas Taylor at the 2:05 mark in the second round.
As the near-capacity crowd howled with delight, Valenzuela (16-3, 10 knockouts) gleefully reveled in revenge, dropping to his knees, then rising with joy as De Los Santos (17-3, 15 KOs) came to several seconds later. The rivals met at center ring with the 26-year-old De Los Santos flashing his index fingers, reflecting their record against one another.
Valenzuela called for a fight with 140-pound king (and pound-for-pound fixture) Shakur Stevenson.
Said the 27-year-old Mexican who resides in Renton, Washington: “It was a beautiful experience for me. Just from the start of the week, seeing my name on the big billboards down the Strip, it was a dream come true. … It really motivated me, and then just coming out to this beautiful theater, man — the people, the atmosphere was amazing.”
Valenzuela won his title in 2024 by out-boxing Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, losing it last year to Gary Antuanne Russell — preceding his deal with Zuffa Boxing. The startup promotion held its first card in January and shares its headquarters with UFC, tabbing the Apex for its first six cards.
Its seventh was held in this month in Bournemouth, England, its eighth Sunday on Las Vegas Boulevard.
The glitzy venue has long been a hub for boxing cards held by other banners, be it Premier Boxing Champions — which presented Valenzuela’s loss to the De Los Santos — Matchroom Boxing, Top Rank or Golden Boy Promotions. Its capacity more than doubles the Apex and matches the hotel’s luxurious vibe, summoning scores of spectators, mostly dressed in their Sunday best.
The eight-fight card began at 2 p.m. and featured five preliminary bouts, allowing the venue to slowly fill in anticipation for the main card on Paramount+.
Cain Sandoval (18-1, 15 KOs) decisioned Brandun Lee (30-1, 23 KOs) in a 10-round slugfest at welterweight and Omar Trinidad (21-0-2, 14 KOs) preserved his unbeaten record with a win at featherweight over former IBF super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas (38-5-1, 25 KOs).
Zuffa frontman Dana White watched in approval from his ringside seat.
“This is a great venue. Great venue for fights,” said White, also the UFC’s president, having promoted Power Slap shows at the Chelsea. “I like it here and the fans were awesome tonight. But there was a lot to get excited about tonight. It was a great card.”
Valenzuela and De Los Santos made their ringwalks with the crowd abuzz and summoned more cheers with first-round exchanges, ferociously foreshadowing the way the fight finished. Valenzuela was sharper, faster and lighter on his feet as the matchup continued.
Not that it would last much longer. He’d leave happy. The fans would, too.
“For Zuffa to take this lead (in Las Vegas outside the Apex) with me, I took that with a lot of pride, man. I wanted to come out and show out,” Valenzuela said.
Contact Sam Gordon and sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on X.
