RESULTS and PHOTOS: Navarrete vs Villa Undercard

LAS VEGAS (October 10, 2020) — Elvis Rodriguez, an undefeated southpaw from the Dominican Republic, returned to Top Rank’s Bubble inside the MGM Grand Conference Center for his fourth appearance. The outcome matched those of his three previous trips. He banged his way through Cameron Krael’s guard with booming right hands until the fight died down in the Las Vegas native.

Krael succumbed to the young southpaw’s power early in the third round. Undefeated prospects Bryan Lua and Lorenzo Simpson weren’t able to outdo Rodriguez’ fireworks, but both boxed their way to dominant victories to gain experience and more exposure. The three fights set the stage for the evening’s main event, the vacant WBO Featherweight championship battle between former 122-pound champion Emanuel Navarrete and the upset-minded Ruben Villa.

Bryan Lua (6-0, 3 KOs) vs Nelson Colon (4-3, 3 KOs)

Lightweight Bryan Lua returned to The Bubble fresh off his exciting TKO2 victory over Luis Norambuena on September 19. Unfortunately, Puerto Rico’s Nelson Colon approached the fight with a defense-first game plan, and left openings for Lua fireworks.

The 22-year old from Madera, Calif. put forth the effort. In the fight’s first frame Lua keyed on Colon’s body with his right hook, but added the same shot with the opposite hand. Colon operated from behind his guard, catching the busier Lua when possible.

Lua relied on his left jab more in in the second round, but didn’t leave the right hook behind totally. He attacked fiercely in spots, attempting to crash through his opponent’s high guard and finished up with complimentary body shots.

In the fourth, Colon struck as he landed a right hand while Lua loaded up to land a shot of his own. Lua made few mistakes over the balance of the fight. He gave Colon enough offense to remain concerned en route to a unanimous decision for his seventh victory. Lua swept all the rounds on all three cards 60-54.

Lorenzo Simpson (8-0, 5 KOs) vs Sonny Duversonne (8-0, 5 KOs)

Somebody’s “0” had to go between undefeated Middleweights Lorenzo Simpson and Sonny Duversonne. The action started with both men trading lighter shots to find either range or rhythm. Simpson landed a pair of right hooks to the side of Duversonne’s head as the 30-year old leaned on the ropes too long.

Simpson did a great job finding openings in Duversonne’s guard in round two. If the head shot failed to find its mark the 20-year old sent a right hand to the body for a scoring opportunity. When the third arrived Simpson picked up the pace. Duversonne weathered the storm but never landed enough to make a full response to Simpson’s body work.

Duversonne pressed forward to open round four. He landed an early right hook to the body. Simpson used his legs, stayed out of vulnerable spots and evaded Duversonne’s pressure.

Simpson’s glove touched the ground after a right hand landed at the same time the Baltimore native went to circle out and stepped on Duversonne’s left foot. Duversonne received credit for a knockdown despite Simpson’s protest.

The 20-year old southpaw never got even with the knockdown, but he easily outclassed Duversonne over the final three rounds. The judges favored Simpson’s boxing with an official score of 78-73 from two judges and 79-73 from the third. Simpson improved his record to 9-0 in his debut fight with management outfit MTK.

Elvis Rodriguez (9-0-1, 9 KOs) vs Cameron Krael (17-16-3, 4 KOs)

Fast-rising Dominican southpaw Elvis Rodriguez had nearly established a phase, or era, of his career in The Bubble. Rodriguez entered the ring with three knockouts in as many appearances at the MGM Grand Conference Center – his 8-rounder versus Cameron Krael marked his fifth fight of 2020.

Crael stood in the pocket through the first two rounds. Rodriguez’ jarring right hands started showing its effect on the left side of Krael’s face. Krael stood wobbly towards the latter part of the second frame.

In round three Krael returned to the pocket, but with a noticeably lower output. Shortly into the round a right hook around Krael’s guard sent him to the canvas. He opted to stay down and allow referee to complete his 10-count at 0:53. Rodriguez’ 10th KO was just the second time Krael had been stopped inside the distance in his 17 losses.

All photos by Mikey Williams/Top Rank