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Rolando Romero Wins WBA Super Lightweight World Title With
Ninth-Round TKO Over Ismael Barroso
Photos: Esther Lin - SHOWTIME
Hard-hitting Rolando “Rolly’’ Romero fulfilled his
lifelong dream of winning a world championship as the
native Las Vegan recorded a ninth-round TKO against No.
1 contender Ismael Barroso trailing on all three judges’
scorecards to capture the vacant WBA Super Lightweight
World Title on Saturday live on SHOWTIME from The
Chelsea inside The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas headlining
a Premier Boxing Champions event.
A year after he last stepped into the ring and suffered
the first loss of his career, Romero’s arms were raised
as “the new” world champion. The 27-year-old survived a
third-round knockdown and came back to hand the
40-year-old Barroso (24-4-2, 22 KOs) a stunning defeat
on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® as many thought the
fight was stopped prematurely by referee Tony Weeks, who
waved off the contest at 2:41 of the ninth round.
“I’ll be honest, he’s a warrior and he should have been
allowed to continue,” said Romero, who improved to 15-1
with 13 KOs and became the 89th fighter to perform on
SHOBOX: The New Generation to go onto capture a world
title. “He wanted to keep going and I wanted him to keep
going as well.”
In his first fight at 140 pounds, Romero landed a
powerful, pushing left hook that sent Barroso to the
canvas in the ninth and when the fight resumed both
fighters traded punches with Romero connecting on a
powerful right, but missing on a left hook before Weeks
stepped in and called the fight.
“The first punch was when I had him hurt to begin with,”
Romero said. “It was right on the nose, it was a little
clip.”
At the time of the stoppage, Romero was down on all
three scorecards: 78-73, 77-74, 76-75.
“I think it was an injustice to stop the fight,” said
Barroso, a late replacement after Alberto Puello, who
previously held the WBA 140-pound title, had been
stripped of his title because of a failed VADA test. “I
was landing the better shots. It was a push on the first
knockdown. It wasn’t a big blow or anything. The referee
just stopped the fight, and he didn’t say anything. You
can see it clearly. I’m the one who’s hitting him. There
was nothing clear that he hit me with. I don’t
understand why they stopped the fight.”
Barroso outlanded Romeo, 57-40, and threw 297 punches to
230 for Romero.
Romero was dropped by a strong Barroso left hand in the
waning seconds of the third round as Romero touched the
canvas for just the second time of his career as he was
also knocked out by a Gervonta Davis left in his last
fight a year ago.
“I boxed the entire time,” said Romero, who became the
second Las Vegas native to win a world title along with
Ishe Smith. “I came in a little cold. I got cracked and
I got up like a champion and kept going.”
Romero was clear about his future intentions after the
fight. “There’s only two fights I want,” he said.
“There’s the rematch with Tank Davis. But I think
there’s a much bigger option. I want to go after Ryan
Garcia. We can do it on Showtime PPV.”
In the co-main event, Rances Barthelemy (30-2-1, 15 KOs)
bounced back from a stoppage loss last July to Gary
Antuanne Russell to pick up an unpopular majority
decision against Omar Juarez (14-2, 5 KOs) in a super
lightweight bout. The former world champion at 130 and
135 pounds, Cuba’s Barthelemy started quickly and ended
it the same way as he won the first and second round and
the ninth and 10th rounds on all three judges’ cards.
The scores were 95-95, 97-93 and 98-92 in favor of
Barthelemy.
The crowd at The Chelsea rained down boos after the
decision was read as many thought that Juarez had done
enough to win the fight. “I understand that most of the
fans are Mexican here and they were going for Juarez,”
Barthelemy said. “But I also had my Cuban fans and they
were cheering.”
It was a close fight based on the punch stats with
Barthelemy winning the power punch category decidedly,
49% to 33%. “I tried to win this fight intelligently
with my brains against a young fighter and that’s what I
did,” Barthelemy said.
Barthelemy said he would love nothing more than a
rematch with Russell. “I want a rematch even more than a
title shot,” he said. “I want that rematch with Gary
Antuanne Russell. I want it badly.”
The 23-year-old Juarez had his three-fight winning
streak halted. “It is what it is,” he said. “I honestly
thought I did enough to win, but all That’s left is keep
working hard for next time. My one mistake was not
staying on top of him. I should have been more
aggressive.”
In the telecast opener, Kenneth Sims Jr., (20-2-1, 7
KOs) moved one step closer to a first world title shot
as he out-dueled fellow top super lightweight contender
Batyr Akhmedov (9-3, 8 KOs) in a thrilling WBA Super
Lightweight World Title Eliminator that ended in a
majority decision in favor of Sims, 116-112, 115-113 and
114-114. After the verdict was read by Jimmy Lennon Jr.,
Sims collapsed to the canvas and then sobbed into his
father and trainer Kenneth Sims Sr.’s, chest following
the biggest win of the 29-year-old’s career.
The Chicago-born Sims now training in Las Vegas and the
Los Angeles resident and Uzbekistan’s Akhmedov combined
to land 640 punches, the most thus far in 2023.
“This is what I’ve been waiting on for years,” said
Sims, who won for the seventh straight fight. “I’m not
supposed to be here right now. That’s what they say.
Ain’t nobody thought I would be here right now. And I
know that I’m the best so at 140 it’s whatever. I’m
ready for anyone.”
Akhmedov landed 331 punches to 309 for Sims in the close
contest. Sims landed 46% of his power punches, compared
to an equally impressive 40% for Akhmedov. In the
championship rounds, Sims landed 87 power punches to
Akhmedov’s 82.
Both fighters continued to push the pace entering the
10th round with Sims’ suffering swelling around his
right eye that closed up as the all-action fight
concluded.
“This is what I expected,” said Sims, whose only two
career losses came on SHOBOX: The New Generation®
prospect series. “This is what I expected of him but I’m
a savage. I’m a dog. I have that dog in me. And that’s
what I was saying during this whole time leading up to
this that I had that dog in me and I was going to show
them. My eye wasn’t bothering me. I don’t care. Like I
said, ‘I’m a savage.’ I don’t care.
“I want the winner of the main event. I want that title.
That’s it. Whoever wins the main event that’s who I
want.”
Akhmedov thought he won the fight after suffering
another close loss on the judges’ cards. His previous
two losses were also narrow defeats on points. “It’s
like every time I don’t stop my opponent it’s like they
win,” he said. “It seems like it’s a goal against me. If
they reach the 12th round it’s like they already won and
they’re already celebrating because the judges give it
to them. Look at the punch stats. It’s the third time in
a row. I won again. I’m winning rounds, I’m throwing
more, I’m hurting him more. He’s surviving seven rounds
out of 12.”
Prior to the telecast, action streaming live on the
SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel and SHOWTIME Boxing
Facebook page saw Starling Castillo (18-1-1, 13 KOs)
hand super lightweight prospect Esteuri “El Puma” Suero
(12-1, 9 KOs) his first pro loss in a bizarre 10-round
unanimous decision victory. Castillo won on all three
scorecards, 94-93 and 95-92 twice, and benefitted from
Suero being penalized three points, including two in
round 10 for biting Castillo on the shoulder. Rising
bantamweight prospect Michael Angeletti (8-0, 7 KOs)
from New Orleans knocked down Venezuela’s Michell
Banquez (20-4, 14 KOs) and referee Chris Flores stepped
in to stop the bout a minute later earning Angeletti the
TKO in the eighth and final round at 1:15 of the frame.
With a large contingent of supporters in attendance,
Justin Viloria (2-0, 2 KO) won his second fight since
turning pro last month as the 18-year-old from Whittier
looked solid in a fourth-round TKO stoppage (1:41)
against Colombian Pedro Pinillo (5-2, 5 KOs) in a
scheduled six-round super featherweight bout.
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