Puerto Rico’s pride, Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez, is set to put his WBO light flyweight world title on the line this Friday against Nicaragua’s own Gerardo Zapata at the Alexis Arguello Sports Complex in Managua.
If you’re in the U.S., gear up to catch all the action of the Gonzalez-Zapata fight and the other exciting fights live on ESPN+ at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Talk about a Friday night special!
Gonzalez, boasting a record of (27-3-1, 14 KOs), has pocketed five wins after a challenging fight with Kosei Tanaka in 2019 for the WBO flyweight world title. Shifting gears, he dove into the light flyweight division, clinching a title shot with a couple of impressive wins. 2019 sure was good for him – he secured a win over the Mexican champ, Elwin Soto, and proudly wore the world title around his waist. Oh, and let’s not forget his significant defenses of the WBO light flyweight in 2022 with clear victories over Mark Anthony Barriaga in sunny Florida and Shokichi Iwata in picturesque Japan.
On the other side, we have Zapata, with a record of (14-1-1, 5 KOs). A true Managuan at heart, he started his pro journey right in his backyard. A little hiccup came in December 2022 when a debatable decision led to his disqualification against Rene Santiago. But like all great fighters, he bounced back and faced Azael Villar in August, which ended in a 10-round draw. That’s the spirit!
Now, for a sneak peek into other fights streaming on ESPN+:
Rene Santiago (11-3, 8 KOs), fresh from the debated win over Zapata, is all set to defend his WBO Latino light flyweight title against a rising star, Nicaraguan Kevin Vivas (7-0, 2 KOs).
In the women’s division, Eveling Ortega (5-4, 2 KOs) is on a mission to extend her winning spree to five as she takes on Costa Rica’s Silvia Duran (3-1, 2 KOs) in a six-round light flyweight bout.
Welterweight hotshot Harvin “Manimal” Aguirre (8-0, 6 KOs) is gearing up to face the experienced Israel Lopez (11-3-1, 8 KOs) in what promises to be a thrilling eight-round fight.
Not forgetting the Honduras native, light flyweight Gerardo Sanchez (8-1, 5 KOs) who’s eager to halt the undefeated streak of Peru’s Eduardo Ajito (11-0, 5 KOs) in another electrifying eight-round bout.
