Ricardo Sandoval wound up taking the scenic route to earning his first major title fight.
Fortunately, he was well prepared for whenever he was bound to arrive at that moment.
California’s Sandoval authored one of the year’s biggest upsets in his unified WBA/WBC flyweight title-winning split decision over Kenshiro Teraji on Wednesday in Yokohama, Japan. A 26-year-old Golden Boy Promotions-represented flyweight, Sandoval survived a fifth-round knockdown to prevail on the road against one of the sport’s top fighters.
“Talk about never giving up,” Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya told BoxingScene. “Ricardo Sandoval – he goes to Japan, fights a two-division world champion and comes home with two world titles. This is exactly why we match Golden Boy fighters accordingly. We match them up tough – literally to get them ready for these types of fights, whether you’re going overseas or you’re going up against King Kong.
“There’s a method to the madness. We know how to do this. The risk paid off for Ricardo Sandoval, and we couldn’t be prouder.”
De La Hoya and the Golden Boy staff weren’t the only ones who believed in Sandoval, 28-2 (18 KOs). The betting odds were cut nearly in half, as Teraji, 25-2 (16 KOs) – a two-weight unified titlist - entered the ring at roughly -550 after opening as a massive -1100 favorite.
Sandoval proved ready for his first career trip to Japan. He boxed well early and then quickly recovered after he was floored in the fifth round. The fight was largely won in the second half of the fight, when Sandoval piled up rounds to prevail on two of the three scorecards for, by far, the best victory of his career.
The moment came more than three years after a previous landmark road win, when Sandoval stopped Jay Harris in the ninth round of a June 2021 IBF title eliminator.
Despite the mandatory challenger status, Sandoval never received the opportunity to fight for the title. He instead risked his ranking and ultimately paid the price, in a July 2022 narrow defeat to David Jimenez. An 11th-round knockdown was the difference on all three cards, but Sandoval quickly rebounded to position himself for greatness.
“From myself to [Golden Boy president] Eric Gomez to the matchmakers, we never had a doubt that Ricardo was ready,” insisted De La Hoya. “It was just a matter of getting him the opportunity and taking advantage of that moment. It was a perfect storm.”
The goal now is for Golden Boy to make Sandoval’s time count at the top of the flyweight division.
Sandoval owes a fight to Akihiko Honda's Teiken Promotions, per a pre-fight agreement to secure the shot against Teraji. It likely means a return to Japan, perhaps in a lucrative rematch with Teraji or even a showdown with fellow California-based flyweight titleholder Anthony Olascuaga, who holds the WBO belt.
“Mr. Honda has an option on him, so we will work with them on his next fight,” De La Hoya told BoxingScene. “Whether it’s a rematch with [Teraji] or a unification with one of the other champions there, we’re on board.”
