Saturday ⁠night’s victory extended 26-year-old Rodriguez’s professional record to 24-0 | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Undefeated Jesse Rodriguez stopped fellow American Antonio Vargas in the sixth ​round to become the WBA bantamweight world ‌champion, capturing a title in a third ​weight division after the flyweight ⁠and super flyweight divisions.

Rodriguez distracted his opponent with a body shot and a looping right ‌hand before landing a straight left, making Vargas buckle to his ‌knees and collapse on the canvas ‌in ⁠front of a stunned Arizona crowd.

Saturday ⁠night’s victory extended 26-year-old Rodriguez’s professional record to 24-0, and reignited the conversation around a long-awaited clash ​with unified super ‌bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue.

“He was a lot tougher than I thought,” Rodriguez said about Vargas, whom he had knocked ‌down in the fourth round.

“Even after ​that first knockdown, he got up and he was fighting like it ⁠never even happened. Respect to him.”

It was Rodriguez’s first time fighting at the ‌118-pound (53.5 kg) division. Japan’s Inoue, who is 33 years old, is also undefeated with a 33-0 record, and has been the undisputed 122-pound (55.3 kg) champion since 2023. “For me, it’s the two pound-for-pound fighters ‌in the sport, the best,” Rodriguez’s promoter Eddie ​Hearn said about a fight with Inoue.

“We’ve got a long-term future in ⁠the sport, belts to collect at 118 ⁠pounds. But for me, that fight is inevitable. If the right offer ‌comes... (Rodriguez) will be there. And trust me when I say he ain’t ​getting beat.”

Published on Jun 14, 2026