Sor Rungvisai vs Juan Estrada 2 Preview

Sor Rungvisai vs Juan Estrada 2 Preview

By Matthew Dean

April 26th at the Forum in LA, make this a date in your diaries. The eagerly awaited rematch between Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (47-4-1. 41 KOs) and Juan Francisco Estrada (38-3-0. 26 KOs ) will be taking place on this day. The fight, a replay of their first encounter in February 2018 will be contended for the WBC and Ring super flyweight belts.

The first encounter at Superfly 2 ended in a majority decision for Sor Rungvisai. After 12 hard-fought rounds the Thai was deemed the winner but Estrada, like the Mexican warrior he is, fought valiantly until the final bell.

So what to expect and why it should not be missed.

Once again I am certain this will be no less competitive a battle so let’s just accept much of the same as in their first match. Both men have fought twice since they last met. Both men have won twice. Sor Rungvisai notched up a 1st round demolition of Young Gil Bae and a decision against Iran Diaz. Estrada decisioned Felipe Orucuta and Victor Mendez retired in 7.

In his trademark yellow and red shorts the little man from Thailand at 5’3 has dynamite in his fists. 41 KOs from 47 wins is testament to that fact. The brutality with which he throws punches is mesmerising. We could just ask Roman Gonzalez who he destroyed in 4 rounds in their rematch just how much the shots hurt. He also hasn’t lost a fight in 5 years. Before that you would need to look back another previous 4 years, so losing is not something he is accustomed to.

Let’s also not overlook that he is rated at no 8 in the Ring’s pound for pound rankings; that this is not his first reign as super flyweight champion and following their first fight he was awarded the vacant Ring and lineal super flyweight world titles. Certainly he will want to make a big impression as he has recently signed a deal with Matchroom / DAZN and this will be the first event shown.

Estrada also is no pushover with 38 wins from 41 fights. With 26 of those coming inside the distance he is also not a particularly light puncher. Estrada is a former WBA and WBO flyweight champion and has a height and reach advantage over the Thai so Rungvisai will need to be at his best to prove he can retain the titles. Estrada seemed at times to struggle a little with the power in their first fight but used his movement to keep away and rally later. This is a tactic he has used in the past so it’s a tried and tested successful routine for him.

On the undercard will feature Daniel Roman and TJ Doheny battling at super bantamweight as well as the junior middleweight debut of Jessie Vargas.