Abraham “Hammer” Perez Dominates Yankiel Rivera, Retains World Championship in Albuquerque

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Abraham “Hammer” Perez delivered another impressive performance in front of his hometown fans Saturday night, defeating Puerto Rico’s Yankiel Rivera by unanimous decision in the main event at Kiva Auditorium.

Perez successfully defended his WBA Interim Flyweight World Championship, improving his undefeated record to 16-0 with seven knockouts. Rivera falls to 8-2-1.

The championship matchup brought together two talented flyweights, with Rivera looking to take the fight to the champion and Perez relying on his boxing skills, timing and counterpunching.

Perez made an early statement in the second round, dropping Rivera with a right hand to the nose in the closing seconds of the round. Rivera managed to beat the count and continue, but Perez had established an early advantage.

Rivera refused to back down. He continued pressing forward and found opportunities to make the fight competitive. In the fourth round, Rivera opened a cut above Perez’s left eyebrow with a right hook, adding another challenge for the champion.

Rivera had some of his better moments in the fifth and sixth rounds, increasing his activity and finding success against Perez. However, Perez continued to demonstrate his composure and ability to make adjustments.

By the seventh round, Perez was doing an effective job of outboxing the advancing Rivera. Rivera continued coming forward, but Perez used his counterpunching to catch him as he came inside.

The eighth and ninth rounds saw a slower pace. Rivera continued applying pressure, while Perez remained patient, looking for opportunities to counter. Neither fighter established a commanding advantage in those rounds.

The pace slowed further in the tenth and eleventh rounds. Rivera appeared to lose some of the activity he had shown earlier in the fight, while Perez continued using his counterpunching and catching Rivera coming forward.

Over 12 rounds, Perez demonstrated the experience and composure of a champion, handling Rivera’s pressure while continuing to find opportunities to land his offense.

When the final bell sounded, the judges returned unanimous scores of 120-107, 119-108 and 117-110, all in favor of Perez.

The victory marked another important milestone for the Albuquerque champion, who successfully defended his interim world title on a major stage in front of his hometown supporters.

For Perez, Saturday night was about more than retaining a championship. It was another opportunity to showcase his talent and continue building his legacy in New Mexico boxing.