Oscar Collazo takes on Yudel Reyes on January 28 in Inglewood
Unbeaten prospect Oscar Collazo will now face Yudel Reyes on January 28, Golden Boy Promotions announced. The 12-round bout will take place at the YouTube Theatre in Inglewood, California and will be part of a four-bout telecast that will stream live on DAZN (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT) headlined by the Alexis Rocha-Anthony Young welterweight bout.
Wilfredo Mendez, who is ranked No. 5 by The Ring and was scheduled to face Collazo, withdrew from the fight citing an injury during training camp.
“We are disappointed with the news that our compatriot Wilfredo Mendez won’t be able to fight me,” said Collazo. “In this sport, anything can happen. We wish him a speedy recovery and wish him the best.
“I want to thank Miguel Cotto Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions, who have worked very hard to ensure that the fight against Yudel Reyes continues to be a (WBO) world title eliminator fight. We know that the rivalry between Puerto Rico (and) Mexico is exciting and without a doubt, we will write another chapter. I promise you, Yudel is not going to stop or get in the way of me. I will be a champion and he will be one more test on my way to the top.”
Collazo (5-0, 3 knockouts), who resides in Villalba, Puerto Rico, last fought on July 16, defeating Victor Saludar by unanimous decision in a fight where both fighters were knocked down in the seventh round. In his previous fight in December 2021, the 26-year-old stopped once-beaten Pedro Villegas in the third round.
Reyes was scheduled to fight on a card this Saturday in Mexico City prior to getting the call to face Collazo.
In his last bout on August 27, Reyes knocked out Job Solano in the opening round. In his previous fight on April 8, Reyes, also 26, dropped Rene Santiago once, en route to a close unanimous decision victory.
Reyes (15-1, 5 KOs), who resides in Monterrey, Mexico, has won his last three fights since suffering the only defeat of his career, thus far, at the hands of Moises Caro in May 2021.
In the main event of the January 28 card, fringe welterweight contender Alexis Rocha (21-1, 13 KOs) will square off against Anthony Young (24-2, 8 KOs) in a 12-round bout.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com
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