Impressive Jesse Rodriguez dominates and stops Srisaket Sor Rungvisai

The thinking going into his fight with former world champion tough guy Srisaket Sor Rungvisai was maybe precocious Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez was biting off more than he could chew.

The thinking was wrong.

WBC super bantamweight titleholder Rodriguez (16-0, 11 KOs) used a sharp jab, precise angles, and effective footwork to beat up and stop Sor Rungvisai in round eight at the Tech Port Arena in San Antonio, TX, Saturday night. 

Rodriguez,22,  was on point from the opening bell against Sor Rungvisai - who holds victories over former champions Roman Gonzalez and Juan Francisco Estrada. He moved and jabbed, rarely allowing the slower Sor Rungvisai (50-6-1, 43 KOs) set his feet. 

As the fight wore on, Rodriguez landed several crisp counters while Rungvisai scored with a thudding shot against the young champion. 

In round seven, Rodriguez, winner in his previous bout against another former champion (Carlos Cuadras), floored Sor Rungvisai with a cutting left hand to the side of the head.

A few minutes later, Rodriguez, who said before the bout that he believed he could stop the 35-year-old, unloaded, catching Sor Rungvisai with several shots to the head – prompting the referee to wave the fight off. 

The time was 1:50 into round eight.  

Rodriguez said, "In the third round, I felt his power wasn’t the same. That’s when I decided to take over."