Zuffa Boxing 2 results: Ex-champ Jose ‘Rayo’ Valenzuela overcomes worrying cut to beat Diego Torres

Jose «Rayo» Valenzuela had to overcome some adversity in his Zuffa Boxing debut.

Valenzeula fought through a horror cut to win a wide unanimous decision over Diego Torres in the headliner of Zuffa Boxing 2 on Sunday night at Meta Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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Valenzuela was awarded nine out of 10 rounds on all three of the judges’ scorecards for his return to 135 pounds. It was the first time the former WBA super lightweight champion had fought since losing his title to Gary Antuanne Russell this past March in New York.

A worrisome cut opened up over the right eye of Valenzuela (15-3, 9 KOs) in Round 4, courtesy of a left hook from Torres.

Torres (22-2, 19 KOs), who had won four fights in a row since being stopped by current IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla in late 2023, pressured Valenzuela in the first half of the fight. Despite Valenzuela only being awarded a single round in the contest, in reality the first half of the bout was very evenly contested, with both men getting off some of their punches.

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Even after suffering a cut, Valenzuela seemed to go up a level in the second half of the contest. Torres’ output slowed in the later rounds, which allowed Valenzuela to time Torres’ attacks and counter him effectively. The former champion was able to walk Torres into southpaw left hands. Torres’ lack of head movement meant that he took power shots from Valenzuela on his gloves, which had an accumulative effect over time, as although Torres was taking some of the power out of the punches, they were still having an impact.

Valenzuela’s experience at the world level was the difference in the bout. He wasn’t overwhelmed by Torres’ aggression, and instead was aware that if he weathered an early storm, his own speed and silky skills would take over after Torres’ initial surge — and that is exactly what happened.

«I never got handouts,» Valenzuela said after his win. «I’m just used to taking hard fights. Life’s been hard, and I don’t look for easy routes. My opponent — I want to [thank him]. I appreciate him for taking this fight. He’s a dog, he only had one loss, and he showed why he’s so tough today.»

In the night’s co-feature, Serhii Bohachuk (27-3, 24 KOs) returned to winning ways with a split decision victory over the former WBA (Regular) welterweight beltholder Radzhab Butaev (15-2, 12 KOs).

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Bohachuk and Butaev produced a thoroughly entertaining 10-round close-range slugfest. Butaev, who hadn’t fought at the world level for four years and was stepping up two weight classes from his last significant fight, clearly felt the pace and non-stop pressure offered by Bohachuk, which caused him to slow down in the second half of the bout.

Although Butaev was landing the harder shots on the inside, Bohachuk set a frenetic pace and sustained it for the 10-round period. Butaev retreated to the back foot for much of the second half of the bout, choosing to counter Bohachuk coming in and picking his shots rather than trying to match Bohachuk’s volume and going punch for punch with him.

It was a tight contest, but the stronger finish from Bohachuk nudged him in front.

In the main card opener, Radivoje Kalajdzic (30-3, 21 KOs) produced a stunning turnaround victory over the ex-WBC light heavyweight titlist Oleksandr Gvozdyk (21-3, 17 KOs).

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It was an ideal start for Gvozdyk, who floored Kalajdzic in Round 1 with a left hook to right hand two-piece. Gvozdyk was seemingly proving to be too skilled for Kalajdzic, as he consistently found a home for power shots upstairs. In Round 4, it was a right hand to the body that sank Kalajdzic to the canvas for a second time. Although Kalajdzic beat the count, his defense was clearly letting him down, and Gvozdyk appeared well on his way to a stoppage victory.

But in Round 7, Kalajdzic produced a shocking comeback, rocking Gvozdyk in the final minute with a second right hand that floored the former champion. Gvozdyk rose from the canvas only to succumb to another right hand that sent him down for a second time. Gvozdyk tried to get to his feet, but he stumbled back onto the ring ropes, which forced the referee to stop the fight.

At the time of the stoppage, Kalajdzic had lost every round on two scorecards and was awarded just one round on the third card.

Overall, Zuffa Boxing’s second card was a marked improvement from their first show. All three of the main card bouts delivered terrific action.

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Main card

Lightweight: Jose «Rayo» Valenzuela def. Diego Torres Nunez via unanimous decision (99-91, 99-91, 99-91)

Middleweight: Serhii Bohachuk def. Radzhab Butaev via split decision (96-94, 94-96, 96-94)

Light heavyweight: Radivoje Kalajdzic def. Oleksandr Gvozdyk via seventh-round TKO | Watch video

Prelims

Super welterweight: Jalil Hackett def. Roberto Cruz via majority decision (95-95, 96-94, 97-93)

Lightweight: Justin Viloria def. Oscar Alan Perez via unanimous decision (77-75, 79-73, 78-74)

Welterweight: Damoni Cato-Cain def. Christian Morales via unanimous decision (80-72, 79-73, 77-75)

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Cruiserweight: Jamar Talley def. Devonte Williams via second-round KO | Watch video

Heavyweight: Damazion Vanhouter def. Francisco Julian Gomez Flores via third-round TKO | Watch video