Canelo vs. Mbilli results: Rafael Espinoza retains WBO title after bizarre early stoppage

It was mere target practice for Rafael Espinoza when the WBO featherweight world champion returned to the ring on Saturday after almost a year away, teeing off against an overmatched, late-replacement opponent to win by third-round technical knockout on the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. Christian Mbilli undercard at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Espinoza’s fifth defense was supposed to be against Lorenzo Parra, but the WBO’s No. 1-ranked contender withdrew because of complications arising from a pre-fight medical examination a little more than a week ago.

Ricardo Blandon (21-7, 14 KOs), ranked 15th, was instead brought in — a veteran who had rarely competed outside his native Nicaragua.

Espinoza (29-0, 25 KOs), by contrast, remains undefeated and is one of the more interesting fighters at 126 pounds because of his absurd height for the weight — 6-foot-1 — and remarkable, bludgeoning accuracy with either fist.

Espinoza showcased all that in Saturday’s successful title defense, as well as the effectiveness of his short-range jabs in the opening round alone, loading up on body shots and picking Blandon apart with relative ease.

Rafael Espinoza put in a great performance after the bell 🗣️

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Even in the second, Espinoza displayed variety in his ability as he connected with uppercuts from close range to complement his work from a distance. 

In the third round, a straight right scraped away from Blandon’s left eye, opening a small cut. Espinoza smiled and nodded at his challenger as if to say he knew he had him. All Blandon could do was cover up and retreat, taking the oomph out of Espinoza’s follow-ups. 

The size of the wound and subsequent splatter of blood were enough to convince the referee and ringside doctor to controversially call the contest off. It was a somewhat bizarre and anticlimactic finish, considering Blandon’s corner was not even afforded the chance to work the cut between rounds.

Rafael Espinoza vs Ricardo Blandón is stopped due to a cut in the third round 🤕

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— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) October 31, 2026

“This was an important fight for me, out of the ring for almost a year so I feel fortunate. I want to be more active,” Espinoza said, before taking the microphone and treating the crowd to a post-fight Mexican ballad.

There are two other featherweight titleholders for Espinoza to possibly get more active against: WBC champion Bruce Carrington and IBF ruler Angelo Leo.

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p style=”text-align:left”>”I look forward to unification [fights],” he said.