Jason Moloney Beats Andres Teran By Unanimous Decision In Riyadh

Jason Moloney’s feet and experience carried him past Andres Teran and kept another world championship campaign alive. The Australian defeated the Mexican by unanimous decision over ten bantamweight rounds at The Venue in Riyadh, repeatedly taking back control whenever his opponent threatened to make the evening uncomfortable.

The scores were 99-91, 98-92 and 97-93. There was room to differ over individual rounds, but little reason to dispute the result. Moloney’s quicker combinations and movement supplied the clearer work. Teran could make an impression when he caught him; catching him often enough was the difficulty.

Making his Zuffa Boxing debut in the supporting attraction to Carlos Adames against Gerome Warburton, the former WBO champion improved from 29 wins and four defeats to 30 wins and four defeats, with twenty stoppages. Teran’s record moved from nineteen wins and two defeats to nineteen wins and three defeats, including fourteen stoppages.

For Moloney, 35, this was a third successive victory following wins over Herlan Gomez and Andre Donovan in Australia. Those rebuilding assignments had followed defeats by Yoshiki Takei, who took his WBO title, and Tenshin Nasukawa. Moloney had won that championship by outpointing Vincent Astrolabio in 2023 and defended it against Saul Sanchez. The objective remains another championship opportunity, and beating a dangerous younger opponent gives that ambition some practical support.

Teran, 26, brought a warning in the shape of his previous result. He had stopped the unbeaten Floyd Diaz in the sixth round in June, overturning a fight in which he had been behind on the cards. Moloney had watched that contest from ringside in Las Vegas. He had every reason to respect the possibility of a sudden reversal.

That respect showed in his approach. Moloney selected his moments, punched in combinations and moved rather than offering the Mexican a stationary target. Both men boxed orthodox, but the more important distinction was between Moloney’s ability to change the distance and Teran’s struggle to hold him where he wanted him.

The opening exchanges were measured. Teran looked for counters and found some solid punches, yet Moloney’s movement prevented him from settling into sustained attacks. The Australian did enough to establish an advantage without allowing the younger man the prolonged exchanges that might have made his power more influential.

Teran gradually became more patient in his pursuit. Instead of simply following, he began finding opportunities to meet Moloney as the distance closed. The fourth round provided his clearest early success. Right uppercuts got through, and damage showed around the inside of Moloney’s left eye. For a moment, the Mexican had something more substantial than an opponent to chase.

Moloney’s response in the fifth was important. He answered with quick combinations and restored the pattern that suited him, denying Teran the chance to turn a successful passage into sustained command. It was an experienced fighter’s adjustment: acknowledge the danger, then make the other man solve the distance problem again.

There were signs of the effort involved. Moloney was breathing heavily around the halfway stage, and Teran’s punches had sufficient weight to demand attention. The Australian’s advantage came from managing those difficult spells and resuming his own work. Experience earns its keep in precisely those moments.

The seventh brought another worthwhile round for Teran. All three official cards awarded it to the Mexican, the only round on which they unanimously preferred his work. It also illustrated the limits of his challenge. He could win a passage, even a round, without finding a way to keep Moloney under pressure long enough to alter the contest.

Moloney recovered the initiative again. Every judge gave him the eighth and ninth, leaving Teran with a formidable task approaching the last. The Mexican’s corner wanted greater urgency, but his late challenge arrived with too much ground already surrendered. The arithmetic was becoming less accommodating than the Australian.

Teran did press harder in the tenth. Uppercuts and a right hand brought him success, while Moloney answered with a clean right and continued moving. The Mexican kept searching, but missed as the closing seconds passed. One judge awarded him the round; the other two preferred Moloney. The decision remained comfortably beyond his reach.

Teran leaves with evidence that his punching can trouble an accomplished former champion, and an equally clear lesson about the need to sustain pressure against a mobile opponent. Moloney leaves with his ambitions intact. This was a useful victory over a credible threat, achieved through judgement, speed and the ability to recover control. At this stage of his career, those qualities remain his strongest argument for another place among the leading bantamweights.

For me, Moloney won this with his judgment. Whenever Teran landed something meaningful, Moloney answered with quick combinations and changed the distance before the Mexican could follow up. Teran had success with the uppercut, but his pressure needed better footwork and more variety. You cannot keep following a mobile boxer and expect him to stay put. Moloney showed signs of wear, which stronger opposition will examine, but his ability to recover control impressed me. Teran never made him solve enough different problems.