Caín Sandoval (left) vs. José Angulo (Photo by Lina Baker/360 Promotions)
Cain Sandoval made a name for himself in 2023 and hopes to continue building on that momentum into 2024.
Sandoval will face Javier Molina on February 23, as 360 Boxing Promotions announced Wednesday afternoon. The 10-round fight will take place at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California and will precede the main event fight between welterweights Gor Yeritsyan and Quinton Randall.
Both fights will air live on UFC Fight Pass (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT).
The 21-year-old Sandoval (11-0, 11 KOs), who resides in Sacramento, California, scored an impressive fifth-round knockout victory over the once-defeated Wesley Ferrer in his last fight on Nov. 9. The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Promoter Tom Loeffler was impressed with the knockout victory, but also with the way Sandoval has developed as a prospect over the past few months.
“This is Cain’s fourth fight on UFC Fight Pass and the fan and media response to his performances, particularly his recent knockout of Wesley Ferrer, has been sensational,” said Loeffler, who is the president of 360 Boxing. Promotions. “He Solo is 21 years old and Javier Molina has much more experience, but we feel that Caín is ready to take another step in the competition.”
In their previous fight on July 22, which also took place at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, Sandoval floored Jose Marruffo once en route to a sixth-round knockout victory.
Sandoval, managed by Oscar A. Sánchez, fought four times in 2023, three of them under the 360 Boxing Promotions banner.
Molina (22-5, 9 KOs), who resides in the Los Angeles suburb of Norwalk, has not fought since a split decision loss to Robbie Davies, Jr. on May 21, 2022. His two previous losses came at the hands of by Jesús Ramos and José Pedraza.
The 33-year-old has wins over former world title challenger Amir Imam and the once defeated Hiroki Okada. Molina represented the United States at the age of 18 at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
Molina is the twin brother of amateur standout and former prospect Oscar Molina.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County, California, Star newspaper. He can be contacted at [email protected]
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