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Andreas Hale
Multiple Authors
On the evening of Jan. 31, Puerto Rico’s Xander Zayas (23-0, 13 KOs) was celebrating the biggest win of his boxing career when he became the unified junior middleweight champion by defeating Abass Baraou by unanimous decision in front of his hometown fans.
On the morning of Feb. 1, Zayas was on a flight to San Francisco to meet up with Bad Bunny to rehearse for his part in the Puerto Rican recording artist’s highly anticipated Super Bowl LX halftime show.
Suffice to say, the past two weeks have been a special stretch for Zayas.
“This is what happens when you put in the work and wait your turn,” Zayas, 23, told ESPN on Tuesday. “Everything aligned for me, and big things happened. In 2026, I started off on the right foot by putting the work in, keeping my head down, and when the opportunities came, I was there to shine.”
Zayas, who is currently boxing’s youngest world champion, made a cameo during Bad Bunny’s performance opposite Mexican boxer Emiliano Vargas — a nod to Puerto Rico and Mexico’s storied boxing rivalry in a moment that immediately went viral.
They joined a star-studded list of celebrities, which included Ricky Martin, Lady Gaga, Pedro Pascal, Cardi B, Jessica Alba, Karol G and Ronald Acuna Jr., as Bad Bunny’s rousing theatrical performance paid homage to Puerto Rican culture.
Zayas — who is signed to Bad Bunny’s Rimas Sports — told ESPN last September that he had plans to have a breakout 2026, but not even he thought it would start off like this.
“This was the greatest experience of my entire life,” Zayas said, while noting that he was shocked when singer Ricky Martin, who also performed during the show, recognized who he was. “I expected to become a unified world champion, but I never expected to be part of the Super Bowl.”
Two weeks before he was set to face Baraou, then the WBA junior middleweight champion, Zayas received a call asking if he would like to be part of Bad Bunny’s halftime performance. The obvious answer was yes, but Zayas still had a task at hand: winning his fight with Baraou, which he did by a thrilling unanimous decision in Puerto Rico.
“I didn’t want to be in the Super Bowl as a loser, so I definitely needed to get that victory first,” Zayas said. “They understood and didn’t make no plans until I won. But what his team did tell me was when I win on Jan. 31, I had to fly out the very next day for practice. So, I literally fought Saturday night, got out of the venue at 3 a.m. and hopped on a flight to San Francisco.”
Bad Bunny was in Los Angeles on Feb. 1 to accept a Grammy for his album, “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” which won Album of the Year. However, he had watched Zayas’ fight the evening before.
Upon Bad Bunny’s arrival in San Francisco, he immediately greeted Zayas with a hug as the two briefly celebrated their respective wins before getting to work. Zayas had the opportunity to see what Bad Bunny had in store beforehand and was proud of what the Latin rapper was preparing to present to the world.
“I was so proud because I got a chance to experience the whole thing before it happened,” Zayas said. “I got to see all the work that was put in from everyone, not just the performers but the entire production. It was such a great experience from being able to eat with everyone and standing next to Ricky Martin and Lady Gaga.”
For a man who fights for a living, Zayas said that his cameo was more nerve-racking than any prizefight he has ever been involved in.
“Boxing is what I do for a living, so I am always prepared, but I have never been in the Super Bowl,” Zayas said. “I’ve never been around 70,000 people, and I definitely didn’t want to do something and f— it up. So obviously I was very careful and very nervous.”
With the weekend behind him and a significant amount of attention on his next move, Zayas is already mapping out his next fight.
“[IBF junior middleweight champion] Josh Kelly is my next victim,” said Zayas, who is hoping to land the fight at Madison Square Garden in New York during Puerto Rican Day parade weekend on June 13. “I want all the belts. I’m trying to be like Thanos and get all the Infinity Stones and snap out everybody.”
While he waits for that fight to get made, Zayas can relish in the fact that he has accomplished more in two weeks than most people will do in their entire lifetime. Still, he thinks that even bigger things are in store for his career.
“For now, I’m going to rest in Puerto Rico and enjoy this moment, but every moment from now on is going to be bigger and better than the last one because now I have to continue adding to my legacy,” he said.