Collazo vs Zapata Fight Results: Collazo Scores One-Sided UD

Oscar Collazo overcame a rough second-round onslaught to make the third defense of his WBO strawweight title against Gerardo Zapata. Collazo won a one-sided unanimous decision in an all-southpaw showdown but was caught by a heavy shot in the second round. He quickly turned things around back in his direction and made it look easy. The 27-year-old Collazo, born in Newark but trains out of Villalba, Puerto Rico, won by scores of 119-109 (twice) and 117-110 to improve to 10-0 (7 KOs). Zapata, who hails from Managua, Nicaragua, fell to 14-2-1 (5 KOs).

There was good action throughout the opening round, with Collazo keeping Zapata honest with his lead right hand. In the second round, it seemed Collazo was on cruise control, but perhaps he got complacent as he was clipped by a huge right hand and nearly went down. But he managed to find his feet and retreated from danger.

Collazo returned fire in the third round, connecting with a left to the body followed by a left uppercut. He used his speed advantage to exploit holes in Zapata’s defense, firing quick shots that split the guard. By the time Zapata was ready to fire back, Collazo was already out of the pocket, preparing his next attack. While Zapata seemed stuck in one gear going forward, Collazo took his game to greater heights, changing levels with the jab and mixing in a slew of uppercuts.

From the eighth round on, Collazo dominated Zapata, who to his credit, displayed a great chin. Collazo dished out serious punishment as Zapata stood against the ropes. A bout that began as competitive had turned into a one-sided sparring session. Although Zapata came out aggressively to start the final round, Collazo was prepared for the changeup and quelled his attack with little effort.

Co-Main Event

In the penultimate bout to the main event, junior middleweight Eric Tudor (10-1, 6 KOs) wiped out Roddricus Livsey (12-3-1, 9 KOs) with a right hand to the body in the first round of a scheduled 10-round contest.

Undercard Action

Junior welterweights: Mykquan Williams (21-0-2, 10 KOs) turned the lights out on Willmank Brito (12-6-2, 10 KOs) in a highlight-reel third-round knockout.

Super middleweights: David Stevens (14-1, 9 KOs) rallied from a knockdown to score a first-round knockout of Sergio Lopez (14-5, 10 KOs).

Heavyweights: Yair Gallardo (8-0, 7 KOs) blasted out Michael Ruiz (7-3, 5 KOs) inside two rounds.

Ryan O'Hara

Ryan O’Hara is an award-winning sportswriter based in Denver, Colorado. The 30-year-old has been recognized by the Boxing Writers Association of America three times for his accomplishments, with a best finish of 2nd at the 2022 awards ceremony.

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