Boxing
Keys to Victory: Where will the points be decided between Victor Santillan and Gary Antonio Russell?
Romero vs Lopez: DAZN PPV & Prime Video - TONIGHT
Gary Antonio Russell comes from a famed boxing family and now has a chance to haul another championship to their name.
Russell challenges for Victor Santillan’s interim WBA super bantamweight championship tonight at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and live on DAZN PPV and Prime Video. The bout is a featured 12-round attraction on the main card headlined by Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero vs. Teofimo Lopez Jr.
Tensions and accusations build in Romero vs. Lopez Face Off
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Santillan (16-2, 7 KOs) won the interim title as a result of his third-round TKO of Noel Reyes Cepeda in February.
For the Dominican Republic fighter to keep the title, he’ll need to find a way to get past Russell (21-1, 13 KOs), who last scored a unanimous decision over Dervin Rodriguez in August 2025.
Russell’s brother, Gary Antuanne Russell, is the current WBA super lightweight titleholder. Gary Russell Jr., their older brother, is a former world champion himself.
Will Russell become interim champion? Or will Santillan keep the title in his possession with a big win? With the stakes high in this southpaw vs. southpaw matchup, DAZN News examines the Keys to Victory for both fighters.
Victor Santillan’s Keys to Victory
Work the head and body as an early combo
Watch Victor Santillan in action and he does a nice job of working the head and body with a lightning-quick jab to the face followed by a stab to the body.
Doing this successfully against Gary Antonio Russell would mean keeping the challenger on the outside, forcing the Washington D.C. native to respect the stick despite the Santillan’s slight deficit in reach.
Then, Santillan can bring more pressure from there.
Do not overextend
When Santillan overextends, he tends to whiff on shots and gets erratic. That’s when Russell could capitalize with sharp, slick counterpunches that alter the course of this fight. Therefore, Santillan must ensure whatever he draws from his shot selection is compact, crisp and not wide.
Time Russell for a counter
Just as Santillan can be vulnerable to a counter, so can Russell. Go back and watch the American operate against Emmanuel Rodriguez in 2022 and you’ll see a fighter susceptible to a timely counter right repeatedly.
Santillan has to check Russell to see if he has cleared those issues. That means plotting with patience to uncork the right retort at the apt spot — something Santillan is capable of.
Gary Antonio Russell’s Keys to Victory
Establish a prodding jab early
Where Victor Santillan asserting a jab will give him ring real estate to broker the terms of the fight, Gary Antonio Russell establishing a prodding jab will empower him to bring pressure behind the weapon and walk the interim titleholder down to set his own pace.
Make Santillan pay for misses
As aforementioned, Santillan tends to overcommit on some shots, leaving himself exposed. Russell must pounce on these opportunities with check hooks and crosses on the inside.
These cleanly landed shots should give judges the eye candy needed to swing rounds in Russell's favor and that’s vital, considering how southpaw vs. southpaw matchups can get tricky.
Turn the volume up
Santillan is disciplined behind the jab, meaning Russell must fill lulls of action with bustling activity. An increase in punch volume will allow the challenger to be the aggressor — something that should play out well for him on scorecards.
After all, fully committing to letting his hands go could spell the difference between leaving Las Vegas with the interim title in tow or not.
Who has the edge in Santillan vs. Russell?
Analysis: DAZN News’ Mark Lelinwalla
I expect nothing short of an action-packed 12 rounds that will likely see a steady uptick in activity as the bout endures.
That said, I like Russell to slightly get the better of Santillan in exchanges, landing the cleaner shots in cramped quarters to win this southpaw-southpaw war via points and bring a new title back to the boxing family from Washington D.C.
Romero vs. Lopez - Watch on DAZN PPV & Prime Video
The WBA welterweight title is on the line as Rolly Romero and Teofimo Lopez face off this Saturday, August 22, live on DAZN.
Buy as a one-off PPV, via DAZN on Prime Video, or included along with Moses vs. Hrgovic (Aug 29) and Canelo vs. Mbilli (Oct 31) PPVs with a DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription.
