Sanchez, Tovar Headline In El Paso Tomorrow Night

By David Finger

You have to hand it to Albuquerque, New Mexico’s Jason Sanchez. In a day and age when fighters are more interested in their Instagram profiles than taking on the toughest road to contention, Sanchez reminds boxing fans what it was like when fighters, well, fought. And he brings his all-action style of boxing to El Paso, Texas on Saturday night when he takes on a scrappy prospect named Yeyery Castillo (14-1, 11 KOs) from the Dominican Republic in a King’s Promotion event at the County Coliseum.

For Sanchez (17-6, 9 KOs), it’s a continuation of a trend that has defined his entire career. Sanchez was never handed anything in the sport of boxing. He simply went wherever the big fights were and proceeded to battle with anyone and everyone. Early on, he found a way to upend the apple cart and punch his way into contention with a win over a highly regarded undefeated prospect named Jean Carlos Rivera back in 2018 in Panama City, Panama.

The win over Rivera opened doors for the then-undefeated Sanchez. He signed with Top Rank and fought on the undercard of the ESPN-televised Sergey Kovalev–Eleider Alvarez fight the following year before battling Oscar Valdez for the WBO featherweight title in only his 14th professional fight. Unfortunately for fans of the New Mexican, Sanchez came up short in a gritty but lopsided decision loss to Valdez. But Sanchez refused to take a backward step and continued to battle some of the better featherweights in the world.

However, after five losses in his next seven fights, it began to look like his warrior’s mentality might have backfired on him, and people started viewing Sanchez more as a gritty journeyman than a contender.

But Sanchez apparently didn’t get the memo that his run as a contender was over.

In his last fight, the New Mexican clawed his way back into the conversation when he upset undefeated Julian Gonzalez, winning an eight-round split decision. The win over Gonzalez didn’t put Sanchez back in the world rankings, but a follow-up win over another prospect in Yeyery Castillo most certainly should.

For boxing fans, although Castillo is coming into the fight as the slight favorite, he is very much a mystery man. Having fought his first fourteen fights against limited competition in his home country of the Dominican Republic, Castillo took his first step up in competition against fellow undefeated prospect Haven Brady back in November—and was crushed in the opening round. At this point, it remains to be seen if that was simply a case of stage fright, nerves, Brady being a top-notch prospect, or the possibility that Castillo may not be able to take the next step from regional prospect to world-class contender.

But Jason Sanchez should be able to answer any questions fans may have about the Dominican.

In fact, Saturday will answer a lot of questions about both fighters, and there is a very real possibility that whoever ends up on top in El Paso will be able to make a run at a potential NABF or NABO-level title fight in 2026—and maybe even a top-ten ranking.

Rounding out the undercard, El Paso’s Nayeli Rodriguez looks to rebound from a loss to regional rival Diana Laura Fernandez of Ciudad Juarez back in November. Fernandez won a comfortable decision in a WBC Silver title fight, but the Mexican also came into that bout with a huge edge in experience. Despite losing the decision, the setback isn’t seen as one that should set Rodriguez (6-1-1) back much. She looks to get back on track with a tune-up fight against 44-year-old Maryguenn Vellinga (5-5-2, 2 KOs) of Utah tomorrow night.

Also on the undercard will be one of the hottest prospects in the Southwest, Jorge Tovar (13-0, 9 KOs), as he takes on journeyman Henriques Lando (10-9, 7 KOs) of Angola. Lando is a tough fighter with only one stoppage loss. He has twice fought for the IBF African welterweight title and has gone the 12-round distance once in his career. Despite his less-than-stellar record, he is seen as a solid test for Tovar and should give the undefeated prospect some rounds.

Another hot prospect will be looking to punch her way into the world rankings tomorrow as undefeated 18-year-old Ivy Enriquez (5-0, 1 KO) takes on Crystal Hoy (7-13-4, 3 KOs) in a six-round clash. Despite Hoy’s record, this is a clear step up for the teenager from El Paso, as Hoy has previously fought for an IBF world title, an IWBF world title, and a WBC International title in her career. Like Lando, she has proven to be a gritty and tough opponent, having only been stopped once in her career. Many fans expect this to be Enriquez’s toughest fight yet, and it is widely assumed that a win will catapult her into the world rankings.

Another El Paso teenager, 18-year-old Pedro Rodarte (1-0), will look for his second win as he takes on fellow undefeated fighter Kenario Davidson (1-0) of Mobile, Alabama in a four-round affair. Las Cruces, New Mexico’s Ariana Carrasco clashes with Columbus, Ohio’s Tennielle Young in what will be both fighters’ professional debuts. Opening the event will be Las Cruces, New Mexico’s D’Angelo Joseph Sanchez (4-1, 3 KOs) in a four-round fight with Austin Lewis (1-1) of Moriarty, New Mexico.

The King’s Promotion event will take place at the County Coliseum in El Paso, with tickets available at the box office or by visiting Ticketmaster.com. Tickets start at $40, with the first fight slated to begin at 7 p.m. MST.

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