Collazo eyes Sandoval superfight after staying at flyweight

Oscar Collazo wants Ricardo Sandoval next after his second-round stoppage of Neider Valdez last Saturday suggested the unified strawweight champion has found a home one division north.

Collazo dropped Valdez three times before the finish at Frontwave Arena in Oceanside and immediately called for a unification clash with Sandoval, who holds the WBA and WBC flyweight straps. The Puerto Rican southpaw entered the bout as an 80-1 favourite against late replacement Valdez but told DAZN's Chris Mannix he is ready for much stiffer tests at 112 pounds.

De La Hoya pushes Mexico-Puerto Rico revival

Promoter Oscar De La Hoya, who represents both fighters under the Golden Boy banner, backed the matchup as the best available for either man. Sandoval has not fought since upsetting Kenshiro Teraji by split decision in Yokohama last July, and De La Hoya pitched Puerto Rico or Los Angeles as potential venues to revive the storied Mexico-Puerto Rico rivalry that once headlined boxing's biggest nights.

"I wanna bring back that Mexico-Puerto Rico rivalry that we always had back in the days with De La Hoya-Trinidad and Chavez-Camacho," De La Hoya said, per The Ring. "I want Oscar Collazo to go up two weight divisions, and let's do that fight live from Puerto Rico — or from Los Angeles."

Collazo, ranked ninth on The Ring pound-for-pound list, holds The Ring, WBA, and WBO titles at 105 pounds and had previously mentioned unification bouts against IBF strawweight champion Pedro Taduran and WBC titleholder Siyakholwa Kuse. The 29-year-old appears ready to leave those plans behind for the Sandoval superfight.

Sandoval, 27, is 27-2 with 18 knockouts and has not committed publicly to the bout. No date or venue has been announced.

Source: ringmagazine.com