Edward Vazquez aims to prove that he is still in the same place as he was against Kenneth Taylor
Edward Vazquez, in the eyes of promoter Lou DiBella and other boxing insiders, is an undefeated fighter.
Despite a few setbacks, the junior lightweight continues to move forward with his career, aiming for another meaningful fight in 2025.
Vazquez will face Kenneth Taylor on Wednesday night at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The 10-round fight will precede the main fight between IBF world champion Miyo Yoshida and Shurretta Metcalf.
Both fights will be broadcast live on ProBox TV (8 pm ET/ 5 pm PT).
DiBella hopes that Vazquez will get another chance to fight a top contender soon, which will lead to a shot by one of the world title holders. He believes the fans know what kind of fighter Vazquez is, despite the results in the only two defeats of his career.
“In my mind, Eddie Vazquez should have gotten the nod over (Joe) Cordina and was clearly nominated against Raymond Ford,” DiBella told The Ring on Monday afternoon. “He is a champion waiting for a bigger opportunity. Hopefully another good win will help (make) that happen.”
Vazquez (16-2, 3 knockouts), who lives in Fort Worth, Texas, defeated veteran Daniel Bailey by unanimous decision in his last fight on May 3. The victory over Bailey came nearly six months after Vazquez’s loss. Majority decision for IBF junior lightweight world champion at the time Joe Cordina.
In February 2022, Vazquez lost a split decision to Ford, who would go on to win the WBA featherweight world title on March 2 of this year. Most boxing insiders and fans thought Vazquez did enough to win against Ford in a fight between undefeated featherweights.
Since losing to Ford, the 29-year-old has won four straight titles, including two straight split victories over Viktor Slavinskyi and Misael Lopez, the latest of which took place on ShoBox TV on February 17 of last year. Five months later, Vazquez defeated rival Bryan De Gracia by unanimous decision.
Taylor (14-3-2, 6 KOs), who lives in Tyler, Texas, last fought on April 26, losing by majority decision to undefeated lightweight Victor Hernandez. Hernandez’s loss snapped a three-game winning streak.
The clash between Vazquez and Taylor, as well as the Yoshida-Metcalf fight, will be part of the Broadway Boxing card promoted by Lou DiBella. Portions of the proceeds from the Heroes on the Hudson event will be donated to charities, including the West Point Society of New York, Doctors Connecting Players, and the Headstrong Project.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has handled boxing in Southern California and internationally since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. They can be reached at [email protected]
