In the co-main event, rising heavyweight star Frank “The Cuban Flash” Sanchez (20-0, 13 KOs)dominated Christian Hammer (26-9, 16 KOs) on his way to a unanimous decision victory after 10 rounds of action.
“To see Canelo there, supporting me like he was definitely motivated me even more,” said Sanchez. “He always supports me and everyone that’s with him in his gym. It makes me want to keep improving.”
Sanchez entered the fight after earning a career-best victory in October 2021 over then-unbeaten Efe Ajagba, and kicked off 2022 showing the supreme boxing skill that has put him on the radar as a potential future heavyweight champion. The 29-year-old Sanchez has risen up the rankings under the tutelage of renowned coach Eddy Reynoso and received ringside encouragement Saturday night from stablemate and pound-for-pound star Canelo Alvarez.
Hammer proved why he has become a durable veteran contender at heavyweight and hung tough with Sanchez, who controlled the fight with a strong jab and a sharp and relentless body attack. Throughout the course of the action Sanchez landed 36 punches to the body and seemed to hurt him to the body in round three, forcing Hammer to retreat to the ropes.
Sanchez scored a knockdown late in round 10 to punctuate the performance and put together an impressive 87 to 24 advantage in total punches landed, including a 27% to 13% accuracy edge. After 10 rounds, all three judges saw the fight 100-89 in favor of Sanchez.
“I feel very happy,” said Sanchez. “Starting out the year like this with another win in front of all the Cuban fans here in Miami is amazing.”