Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza Predictions: ‘El General’ brings KO excitement

Knockout artist Emiliano Vargas takes on Ecuador’s Alexander Espinoza this Saturday, July 26. The bout takes place at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York on the undercard of Xander Zayas vs Jorge Garcia Perez. ESPN+ carry the American broadcast while UK fight fans wait to hear of a provider, given the expiration of Sky Sports’ deal with Top Rank.

Here are my Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza predictions ahead of Saturday’s scrap.

Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza Odds

Vargas is a whopping 1/50 to win his 15th pro outing. Espinoza is a 14/1 shot to halt the rise of the prospect. A draw is 20/1.

Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza Fight Preview

‘El General’ knows what the fans like. He has 12 knockouts on his 14-0 record, with nine opponents not making it out of round two. The opposition has been comprised of boxers Vargas was expected to beat, of course. But doing so spectacularly is how a prospect creates buzz. 

Prelims can be a slog for fans and almost-esteemed writers such as your obedient servant. Far too often they are a procession of unbeaten and untested youngsters pipping the great and grizzled old faces of the journeymen circuit on points. Lo! Sometimes there is excitement! A cut, a flash knockdown or perhaps even an upset win for the craggy veteran. But often, they are a dreary cycle of 4x3s where nobody learns anything.

Fighters like Vargas are manna from heaven on these occasions. A rangy, fast and explosive switch-hitter; he fights as if conscious of the fact he is not getting paid by the round. 

Long-limbed at 5’9 with a 72” reach, many fighters with his physique would stay at distance. Perhaps against better opposition, it will be prudent to do so. But Vargas is like a homing missile. Frustrate then detonate. Outbox you from range before zeroing in for the knockout shots.

Espinoza is the latest man to try and stem the tide. As with most opponents facing an undefeated 21-year-old prospect, the Ecuadorian is the underdog. But he is no patsy, at least on paper. Vargas boasts a 20-3-1 record. But there are telltale signs of a short night in the offing.

Espinoza has been knocked out in two of his three defeats. Once by Roger Guerrero, who is currently on a run of eight consecutive defeats with seven coming by stoppage. The other KO loss was to Rogelio Jimenez, adding fuel to the notion that Espinoza will inevitably get stopped by anyone who could feasibly shorten their name to an informal “Rog”. 

But all joking aside, Jimenez is no great shakes either. He copped a loss to 4-7-1 Carlos Eduardo Reyes for example. You do not have to be special to beat Espinoza, all due respect.

Top Rank hope Vargas is special. The lineage suggests he could be. ‘El General’ is the son of the great Fernando Vargas, the iconic ‘El Feroz’ who terrorised the super welterweight division in the 1990s and 2000s. One of the era’s most recognisable faces, he was a controversial but absorbing figure who had bitter classics with Oscar De La Hoya and Felix Trinidad. Vargas lost those fights, but beat headline names like Winky Wright and Ike Quartey on his ascent.

A huge legacy for Vargas to live up to. It helps that Emiliano is not the only son of ‘Ferocious’ trying to do so. Fernando Vargas Jr. is 17-0 with 15 knockouts in his Dad’s old 154lb division while Amado Vargas is a 13-0 lightweight. A problem divided by three might not be a problem solved, but the weight of expectation feels lessened by the safety in numbers approach. 

After all, Dad can’t do the fighting for them. So far, he has not needed to, with none of his progeny tasting a professional defeat. Vargas is unlikely to do so here. But another knockout will help him continue to carve his own path. 

Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza Full Card

Xander Zayas vs Jorge Garcia Perez 

Bruce Carrington vs Mateus Heita

Yan Carlos Santana-Guerrero vs Aaron Alameda

Rohan Polanco vs Quinton Randall

Bakhodir Jalolov vs Gianmarco Cardillo 

Steven Navarro vs Cristopher Rios

Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza

Juanma Lopez De Jesus vs Jorge L. Gonzalez-Sanchez

Julius Ballo vs Brandan Ayala

Emiliano Vargas vs Alexander Espinoza Prediction

This is the sort of challenge that I feel Vargas has outgrown. The opposition must improve from here. But for now, an easy Saturday on the canvas for the youngster. Vargas to win is 1/50.

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