By: Vince D’Writer: In the featured bout of the Matchroom event that took place at the OVO Arena in Wembley, live on DAZN, IBF Flyweight champion Sunny “Showtime” Edwards had a successful Matchroom Boxing debut as he scored a unanimous decision victory over Andres Campos (15-1, 4 KOs).
With the win, the champion Sunny Edwards has made four successful title defenses since winning the IBF strap back in April 2021. Prior to making his fourth title defense, Edwards was in pursuit of a unification bout with one of the three other champions, but when a unification bout never materialized, Edwards chose to face Andres Campos.
On the night of June 10th, Campos came out fighting with aggression as he pressed forward and attacked his opponent’s body. Campos was able to force Edwards against the ropes and proceeded to land a few combinations.
In the second round, Edwards started the round by landing a stiff jab that knocked Campos off balance. As the round progressed, Edwards was getting into a rhythm, and he was able to close the round out by landing a sharp one-two combination.
For the next couple of rounds, Campos continued to apply pressure, but Edwards was elusive as he used his footwork and head movement to avoid most of the challenger’s attack. When Edwards decided to go on offense, he used swift lateral movement to put himself in position to land clean single shots.
In the 5th round of the bout, Edwards hurt Campos when he connected with a sharp right hand to the body. Realizing his opponent was hurt, the defending champion pressed forward and landed a flurry of shots.
Campos was able to bounce back in the 6th round as he experienced success fighting off the front foot. He landed the straight right hand on multiple occasions, and he also landed a few good shots when he had Sunny Edwards pinned against the ropes.
Down the stretch, Edwards used his movement, footwork, and accurate punching to cruise through the remainder of the rounds. In the end, the defending champion Sunny Edwards earned a unanimous decision victory by the scores of 117-111 across the board.
Sunny Edwards (20-0, 4 KOs) had a routine night at the office as he did what he was supposed to do. Now the 27-year-old Edwards is ready to clean out the division because he doesn’t like the fact that other boxers in his weight class can call themselves a champion.
“There’s three other people that are saying the same thing that I am when I’m the only one in my division that has beaten a world champion, beat other world champions, former world champions. All of these fighters are vacant title holders. They’re not fighting champions; they’re not beating champions. They’re picking the easiest opponent.”
Despite the fact that three other men hold a flyweight world title, Sunny Edwards believes he’s number one in the division because of his body of work. He’s made it his mission to call out all of the champions, but he has one in particular that he would like to focus on first.
“When Bam Rodriguez announced that he was coming to flyweight, he announced that he was coming to fight me for my world title in the UK,” Edwards stated. “He didn’t come to the UK, he didn’t come for my title, he went to face a no-hoper in some faraway land, and he won a vacant title. Who cares about that? He wants to negotiate 50/50, I’ll negotiate 50/50. I want big fights to create my legacy.”
Obviously, the 23-year-old WBO flyweight champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez received the message, and he wasted no time in regards to providing an immediate response.
“I know Sunny has been talking a lot, but that means nothing to me. Let’s see if he can actually back it up when that bell rings. I know what I’m capable of, and I know I have what it takes to beat him. The best of me hasn’t been seen yet. See you soon, Sunny!”
Both Sunny Edwards and Bam Rodriguez are two boxers who are striving for legacy. A unification bout between these two champions would be great for the sport of boxing. Hopefully, it can happen sooner rather than later.
