Oscar Collazo Defeats Jayson Vayson in Seventh Round, Retains Unified World Championships

Puerto Rico’s rising boxing star Oscar Collazo successfully defended his unified WBA and WBO minimumweight titles, stopping a game Jayson Vayson in the seventh round at Fantasy Springs Casino in California last night.

Although the bout was competitive, Collazo appeared to be edging it by narrow margins as Vayson remained aggressive throughout. However, to the surprise of many, Vayson’s corner opted to halt the contest at 1:41 of round seven, despite their fighter still actively engaging and seemingly in the fight.

At the time of the stoppage, all three judges had Collazo ahead 59-54, though those scores didn’t fully reflect the back-and-forth nature of the contest. DAZN’s unofficial scorer, Chris Mannix, had the fight closer and even noted that Vayson had visibly hurt Collazo with a body shot earlier in the bout.

Collazo, 28, started strong, scoring a knockdown in the first round with a check right hook that caught Vayson off balance. While the shot appeared more like a cuffing forearm on replay, it earned Collazo an early 10-8 round. Vayson recovered well, fighting back in the subsequent rounds and landing a notable uppercut in the sixth that highlighted his competitiveness.

But in the following round, Vayson’s corner made the call to stop the fight, notifying referee Thomas Taylor of their decision.

“I was putting pressure on him, picking my shots, and we got the stoppage,” said Collazo, who now improves to 13-0 with 10 knockouts. He acknowledged being hurt to the body but praised Vayson’s toughness: “He’s a good warrior. I loved the fight, and I hope the fans loved it too.”

Vayson, now 14-2-1 (8 KOs), didn’t protest the decision by his team, despite wanting to continue. Respectful in defeat, he accepted their call, recognizing the damage he had taken, particularly to the body.

Looking ahead, Collazo appears poised for bigger opportunities. A shot at undisputed status in the 105-pound division is within reach, with other titleholders seen as beatable. Alternatively, a move up in weight could be in play—possibly to challenge newly crowned flyweight champion Ricardo Sandoval, who recently claimed his titles with a split-decision win over Kenshiro Teraji in Japan. Interestingly, Sandoval was also in action earlier that evening and expressed interest in a future showdown, which would require Collazo to jump two weight classes.