Roman Gonzalez returns with KO win on ‘Canelo’-GGG undercard
Super flyweight Roman Gonzalez was perhaps the world’s best pound-for-pound boxer for a couple of years.
Easy to see why Saturday.
Gonzalez, in his first fight in more than a year, defeated Moises Fuentes by knockout in the fifth round of their 10-round bout in the first of three pay-per-view fights on the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez-Gennady Golovkin undercard at T-Mobile Arena.
The 31-year-old former four-weight champion was a late addition to the card and said he was thankful for the chance. He bloodied Fuentes in the second round, brutalized him in the third and fourth and finished him with a right hook 1:44 into the fifth.
“When he hit the floor, I got very worried for him and I panicked,” said Gonzalez, who signed to fight Fuentes in late August. “When he regained consciousness … I prayed for him, and I told him that I hope God blesses him, his family and his career.”
Gonzalez (47-2, 39 knockouts) won his first 45 fights and ascended to the top of Ring Magazine’s pound-for-pound rankings after Floyd Mayweather’s first retirement in 2015. But he lost twice to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in 2017 and contemplated retirement.
Gonzalez showcased the rare combination of speed and strength that helped him become an elite fighter and dominated Fuentes (25-6-1, 14 KOs) with jabs, power punches and everything in between.
Lemieux stops O’Sullivan
David Lemieux wasn’t at T-Mobile to talk. Just to fight.
And win in the first round.
Lemieux (40-4, 34 KOs) stopped the loquacious Gary O’Sullivan (28-3, 20 KOs) with a left hook 2:44 into their WBA middleweight title eliminator. He said afterward that he would love to fight Golovkin again.
Golovkin beat him by technical knockout in 2015.
“I felt great. I’m in superb shape,” Lemieux said. “I always give you guys a great knockout, a great fight, and I’m looking forward to doing it again. I’m physically 100 percent in shape now. Canelo and Golovkin are two excellent fighters, and I’m looking forward to fighting them both.”
Munguia finishes Cook
Jaime Munguia followed a pair of knockouts. So he followed the trend and executed one himself.
The 21-year old Munguia (31-0, 26 KOs) beat Brandon Cook (20-2, 13 KOs) via technical knockout in the third round of their WBO junior middleweight title fight in the co-main event and final undercard bout.
The incumbent champion blitzed Cook in the first round and scored a knockdown in the second. The referee intervened in the third amid a devastating flurry.
“With each fight you will see me getting better,” Munguia said. “I just want to show that I can get better and that I want to face the best, so I can show that I am the best.”
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Contact reporter Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on Twitter.