Yoenis Tellez wins decision over Julian Williams, claims interim WBA belt

Yoenis Tellez scored a clear win over Julian “J-Rock” Williams to kick off the Tank vs Roach PPV.

Yoenis Tellez handled his business tonight, winning the interim WBA super welterweight title with a clean and clear victory over former titleholder Julian “J-Rock” Williams.

The 24-year-old Tellez improved to 10-0 (7 KO) with the unanimous decision win, taking tallies of 117-111, 118-110, and 119-109. Bad Left Hook unofficially scored the fight 118-110 and 119-109 for the young Cuban.

The interim title could eventually be elevated to full title status, as the WBA champ at 154 lbs is Terence “Bud” Crawford, who is moving up to 168 in September to face Canelo Alvarez, and may never fight as a super welterweight again.

Tellez didn’t really do anything special in this fight, but he was sound and solid, and his youth and skill set gave the 34-year-old Williams (29-5-1, 17 KO) few opportunities to do more than hang around, which on some level is an accomplishment for the Philadelphia veteran, who doesn’t really have a quality win in nearly six years, and if this were a sport that operated more under logic than connections, he would not have been in position for an interim world title fight in 2025, as he hasn’t been a serious contender in years.

The hope for Tellez will be for him to continue moving forward and up the ladder at 154, which is a division open for a talented young fighter to make a real mark.