Ring Ratings Update: Bam Rodriguez jumps to No. 5 in P4P rankings, wins first Ring championship
Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez solidified his claim as America’s best young fighter with an impressive seventh-round body shot KO of Juan Francisco Estrada on Saturday in Phoenix, Arizona.
Despite a flash knockdown in Round 6 and awful scorecards from two of the official judges (Robert Tapper, who had the bout even after six rounds, and Javier Camacho, who had Estrada up by a point), Rodriguez dominated the fight and turned in the kind of performance that had the boxing fraternity buzzing for days via social media.
Rodriguez (20-0, 13 KOs) had defeated other decorated 115-pound standouts but Estrada (44-4, 28 KOs) entered their showdown as the reigning Ring Magazine champion and winner of two epic 12-round battles with fellow future hall of famer Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez in 2021 and 2022. This was special.
Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez grins as Juan Francisco Estrada is counted out at the end of the seventh round of their Ring Magazine 115-pound championship fight at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo by Amanda Westcott/Matchroom Boxing.
With the Estrada victory, Rodriguez has now defeated three of the sub-bantamweight Fab Four who engaged in an elite-level round robin that began with Gonzalez-Estrada I back in 2012. Bam outpointed Carlos Cuadras in his 15th pro bout in February 2022, and then stopped Srisaket Sor Rungvisai four months later.
However, the southpaw technician hasn’t made his name on veterans alone. In December he stopped then-unbeaten Sunny Edwards to unify two major flyweight world titles.
No other Gen-Z American has the 24-year-old Texan’s resume, which has prompted many pundits and fans to declare that Bam is worthy of the “pound-for-pound top five.”
The Ring Ratings Panel was in agreement with the public.
Anson Wainwright suggested a two-spot bump up the pound-for-pound rankings, from No. 9 to No. 7, but other members of the panel wanted a bigger jump.
“I could see Bam now as high as No. 5, pound for pound,” said Tris Dixon.
Adam Abramowitz and your favorite Editor-In-Chief immediately agreed.
“I would say Bam to No. 5,” added Abraham Gonzalez. “What a performance by both men. Bam put on a P4P performance against a future hall of famer.”
Added Michael Montero: “I agree with moving Bam to No. 5, just ahead of [Artur] Beterbiev and [Dmitry] Bivol, but things will likely change when the two Russians fight each other later this year.”
Added Wasim Mather: “Bam at No. 5 for me. He keeps getting better with every fight against the best in his division and dominates.”
Added Tom Gray: “Bam up to No. 5. The kid is special and getting off the deck to win by KO in the next round made that performance even better. Inoue made a similar statement last time out, but Bam did it against a Mexican boxing legend. Breath-taking stuff!”
Added Daisuke Sugiura: “I like Bam at No. 5, too. It’s refreshing to see these smaller guys always wanting to face each other without much negotiation nonsense, generally make a good fight, and I like that our P4P rankings rewards this.
However, Diego Morilla agreed with Wainwright’s original suggestion of a No. 7 ranking for Rodriguez.
“I am not sure I’d reward him for beating a guy he was supposed to beat handily, especially after he got decked by someone 10 years older and who had been inactive for over a year,” stated Morilla. “I am all for upward mobility in the P4P but I feel there’s nothing wrong about letting him earn his stripes, and a jump from No. 9 to No. 5 seems too much for him right now. Just a thought, obviously, since I know the votes are in. I do love Bam as much as the next guy, obviously. Hopefully, he’ll make us proud and will only move up from now on.”
Morilla’s take gave Montero pause.
“Diego does make some great points regarding the P4P,” he said. “Perhaps we’re all getting caught up in the moment just a bit. “Maybe Bam should move to No. 7, just behind Beterbiev and Bivol.”
Gray disagreed with a lesser ranking for the former unified flyweight titleholder and newly crowned Ring junior bantamweight champ.
“Hey Diego, you were the one guy on Fight Picks who tipped Estrada to win,” said Gray.
“I’d focus less on the knockdown part and more on the response. Bam got up, smiled, and then broke Estrada in half with a body shot in the very next round.
“Knockdowns happen in a fight, particularly when you’re in against an opponent as cunning and cerebral as Estrada. And while Estrada may have been past his best and inactive, very few fans and experts expected that kind of performance from Bam. Most of us went for a late stoppage or points.”
Responded Morilla: “That I was, yes. And it wasn’t as much a pick as it was a warning shot, I believe. And on that, I was right. You can go for the younger flashy guy all you want, but the minute you underestimate an old warrior like Estrada you get punched on the nose and sent down on your ass. I was happy to see Bam’s fast reaction as well, that tells a lot about his character. What I am trying to avoid here is something we’ve done (collectively, not only in the Panel but in boxing in general) before, which is to anoint the new high priest of boxing too soon and then have to find ways to bring him down from the pedestal when more deserving guys start making real accomplishments (see “Spence, Errol”). A jump from No. 9 to No. 7 is more than fair to me, and if he beats the winner of Ioka-Martinez as decisively as he did with Estrada, I’ll be the first to suggest he’s one of the best five fighters on the planet.”
Morilla has a point, but the EIC had the final word of the discussion.
“I’m good with Bam being rated above Bivol and Beterbiev. I think his resume is at least slightly better than both light heavyweights and he proved to be hands down the best flyweight and now the best at 115 pounds (and our champ). Bivol and Beterbiev still need to determine who’s the best at 175.”
RING RATINGS UPDATE (as of June 29):
POUND FOR POUND – Rodriguez advances to No. 5.
SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT – Lester Martinez enters at No. 10 following a dominant 10-round decision over Carlos Gongora.
MIDDLEWEIGHT – Felix Cash exits after dropping a five-round technical decision to Tyler Denny, who enters at No. 10.
JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHT – Teofimo Lopez remains champion after defending the Ring Magazine and WBO titles with a one-sided unanimous decision over the tough and determined Steve Claggett.
JUNIOR LIGHTWEIGHT – Lamont Roach remains at No. 4 after dominating too-tough-for-his-own good Feargal McCrory en route to an eighth-round TKO.
“Roach retained his WBO title,” noted Wainwright. “Solid performance but limited opposition, no movement.”
FEATHERWEIGHT – Rafael Espinoza advances to No. 5 with an impressive fourth-round stoppage of Sergio Chirino. Robeisy Ramirez remains at No. 8 after stopping Brandon Benitez in seven rounds.
JUNIOR BANTAMWEIGHT – Rodriguez is the new champ. Estrada drops to No. 1.
“Estrada showed heart and had some moments, notably the knockdown, but Bam Rodriguez was very impressive – that bodyshot!” noted Wainwright. “Rodriguez goes to champion and Estrada drops to No. 1, but a conclusive winner next week between [Kazuto] Ioka and [Fernando] Martinez could see him drop a spot.”
FLYWEIGHT – Rodriguez and Julio Cesar Martinez, who was banned for nine months following a positive PED test, exit. Sunny Edwards, who scored a ninth-round technical decision over former 108-pound titleholder Adrian Curiel in the co-feature to Estrada-Rodriguez, advances to No. 1. Galal Yafai (7-0, 5 KOs) and Dave Apolinario (20-0, 14 KOs) enter at No. 9 and No. 10.
JUNIOR FLYWEIGHT – Curiel remains at No. 3.
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