Fighter of the Week (2/13-2/19):Edward Vazquez
Fort Worth native Edward "Kid" Vazquez has been accustomed to going on the road and being the B-side. He's done it over and over again. This past Friday night on Showtime's ShoBox series, the "Kid" Vazquez did it again. Vazquez went to Topeka, Kansas, on a Lou Dibella card and entered as a B-side against touted contender Miseal Lopez and exited the ring with his hand raised and is now finally on the fast track to a world title fight. Vazquez moved his record to 14-1 (3), captured our Fighter of the Week award, established himself on a world level, and takes a major step towards fighting for a world title at 126.
The Texan put pressure on Misael Lopez from the start. He scored with a right uppercut that buzzed Lopez. The momentum really started building on the "Kids" side in round two. Vazquez was able to cut off the ring and began having success with the left hook. One, in particular, scored above the ear of Lopez and put him on the canvas just past the midway mark of the stanza. The Fort Worthian had his man in trouble again in the fourth when a big right hand this time staggered his opponent. Vazquez was able to keep his man on the backfoot throughout the middle rounds while Lopez was trying to establish his jab and keep the Texan at bay. Vazquez was able to slip onto the inside and score with his hook and occasionally mixed in an uppercut in what was developing into a tight contest. The fight turned one more time late in the eighth, with the fight likely tightening on the cards. Vazquez landed a left hand that backed Lopez into the ropes with about 30 seconds to go in it. It seemed to make steam out of Lopez, who spent the ninth round working off the jab and apparently fading. Vazquez stayed on the gas, closed out the ninth and 10th rounds, and kept Lopez uncomfortable with his accurate left hook. A big one landed for Vazquez less than a minute into the 10th and final round. Sealing the did for the North Texan given him a split decision victory by scores of 95-94 and 96-93, with the third judge favoring Lopez by a score of 95-94.
Vazquez has done this over and over again. He has gone on a Top Rank Card and upset prospects. He did it on Roy Jones Jr promoted card. He did it again on the Roy Jones Jr VS Mike Tyson PPV extravaganza in what turned out to be a fight of the year candidate. He did it on a DAZN card against Raymond Ford and dominated Raymond Ford over 10 lopsided rounds and was then the victim of the robbery of the year. He did it again on a PBC card on Showtime by upsetting Viktor Slavinskyi. After all this, the "Kid" seems to finally be getting his respect and on a fast track to follow in the footsteps of fellow Fort Worthians like Paulie Ayala and "Cobra" Donald Curry and become a world champion.
