Nothing may harm him. Every part Angelo Leo threw at Luis Alberto Lopez, it appeared, the defending IBF featherweight titlist walked by.
Then, as what typically occurs in boxing, a life-altering punch happens. It unfolded steadily and got here to a thudding conclusion sq. on Lopez’s chin, knocking him out chilly earlier than his head bounced off the canvas Saturday night time on the Tingley Coliseum in Leo’s hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Identical to that, Leo fulfilled a dream, profitable the IBF featherweight title with a left hook that stopped Lopez for the primary time in his profession at 1:16 of the tenth spherical.
Leo (25-1, 12 knockouts) mentioned he had been working towards that left hook all over the place he may, from the fitness center to being in entrance of a mirror. Getting into the struggle, Lopez (30-3, 17 KOs) was The Ring’s No. 1 ranked featherweight and Leo was ranked No. 10.
Leo was forward on two of the decide’s scorecards, 86-85, whereas one decide had Lopez forward, 86-85, on the time of the stoppage.
Lopez, who misplaced for the primary time since 2019, was making his fourth protection of a title he gained in December 2022, whereas Leo gained his fifth-straight bout since dropping his WBO junior featherweight title protection to Stephen Fulton.
Leo felt Lopez was underestimating him coming into the struggle. Lopez actually underrated Leo’s energy.
Angelo Leo nails Luis Alberto Lopez with a left. Lopez appeared to stroll by every thing Leo landed, till the tenth (Photograph by Mikey Williams/Prime Rank).
He paid dearly for it later.
After a feeling-out opening spherical, Leo unleashed a torrent of photographs within the second, beginning with an overhand proper to Lopez’s chin with 1:39 left within the spherical. Leo adopted with one other proper, a left to the physique, and one other proper to the aspect of Lopez’s head. It stirred the hometown crowd to chant his title, “Leo, Leo, Leo.”
Leo poked Lopez with a double jab within the remaining minute of the second, with the “Leo” chants portray the backdrop of his costs. It was a really sturdy spherical for Leo, who landed 24 of 49 punches, together with 11 physique photographs within the spherical.
Lopez tried utilizing his awkward, wide-open type to set Leo off steadiness. With 1:49 left within the third, Lopez popped Leo’s head again with a proper uppercut. Leo countered Lopez with a proper to the face with 1:20 remaining.
As quickly because the bell sounded to open the fourth, Leo pressed Lopez instantly. Lopez appeared to stroll by every thing Leo was throwing, standing sturdy within the pocket. With 26 seconds left within the fourth, Leo shook his head as Lopez linked on a fast mixture. Leo was making an attempt to win with quantity; Lopez was making an attempt to win with energy photographs.
LOOK AT THIS BRUTAL KO BY ANGELO LEO ONE MORE TIME 🤯 pic.twitter.com/aPy9PW697g
— Prime Rank Boxing (@trboxing) August 11, 2024
There have been just a few borderline photographs within the fourth to which Lopez tried drawing the eye of referee Ernie Sharif.
Because the fifth spherical unfolded, Lopez stayed patiently within the pocket and tried catching Leo as he neared. Lopez’s proper uppercut was notably efficient. With 25 seconds remaining within the fifth, Lopez swung a proper into Leo’s head. Lopez once more landed a proper uppercut because the spherical closed.
Displaying no respect for Leo’s energy in anyway, Lopez walked down the hometown challenger swinging one shot at a time. He had Leo backing up—and pondering. Leo did get one good shot in, popping Lopez’s head again with a minute left within the sixth.
By means of six, Leo had outlanded Lopez, 128/318 (40%) to 85/397 (21%). What punch stats didn’t reveal, nonetheless, was how heavy Lopez’s photographs had been compared to Leo’s.
With 2:13 left within the seventh, Lopez once more tried to attraction to Sharif about low blows, when a Leo left hit Lopez on the waistline. Lopez again pedaled and easily stopped preventing. He appeared over to Shafir, tapped his waistband along with his proper, as Leo stored punching.
Leo started displaying a reduce beneath his proper eye. He did maintain up properly beneath Lopez’s energy photographs—and he gave the impression to be profitable by seven.
Within the first 30 seconds of the eighth, Sharif did warn Leo about borderline photographs, “Don’t try this, maintain them up.”
Leo was counting on the homerun punch. Leo stored chopping at Lopez, as Shafir was seemingly dropping management of the struggle. He was late in getting between the fighters to interrupt them and was too late when he warned them.
With 1:38 left within the ninth, Lopez scored with a proper inside. By this time, Lopez had completely no respect for something Leo tried. He walked in a straight line to the challenger, stalking Leo.
It might be a grave mistake Lopez would pay for emphatically the next spherical.
Between the ninth and tenth, Lopez was instructed by his nook, “You can not rely upon the ref, he’s on (Leo’s) aspect, okay?”
Lopez was additionally instructed to create a long way, creating house to attach with the uppercuts.
Then, proper after a break with 1:58 left within the tenth, Leo, from out of nowhere, unfurled a textbook left hook catching Lopez proper on the chin knocking him out. The punch was blunt. It was emphatic. It was explosive. Leo appeared down on the fallen Lopez, admiring his punishing blow as he walked away. Sharif stood over the supine Lopez counting, whereas ringside officers started spilling into the ring earlier than Sharif may end the rely.
That ended it.
Within the co-feature, between undefeated junior welterweights Lindolfo Delgado and Bryan Flores, Delgado gained by 10-round split-decision scores of 95-93 and 96-92, outdistancing the one card in favor of Flores, 96-92.
Delgado (21-0, 15 KOs) gained because of a pair of 10-8 rounds, one within the third, off a knockdown, and within the seventh, off some extent deduction for Flores’ low blows.
Flores (26-1-1, 15 KOs) had outlanded Delgado, 104 to 100, though Delgado linked at a better proportion, 100/354 (28%) to Flores’ 104/471 (22%).
Within the opening rounds, Flores was the extra aggressive, backing up Delgado, a 2016 Mexican Olympian. Delgado started choosing up his rhythm within the third, catching Flores with a clubbing proper to the aspect of the top sending him down with 1:59 remaining within the spherical. It marked the seventh time in Flores’ profession that he had been knocked down.
Lindolfo Delgado remained undefeated with a split-decision, 10-round victory over Bryan Flores (Photograph by Mikey WIlliams/Prime Rank)
Within the opening seconds of the fourth, Flores shocked Delgado with an overhand proper. The third-round knockdown appeared to get up Flores, who resorted to coming ahead as he had within the first two rounds. With 48 seconds left within the fourth, Flores plowed Delgado with a sweeping proper on the again of Delgado’s left ear. Delgado couldn’t get out of the best way of Flores’ rights.
Within the first minute of the sixth, Flores landed a one-two on Delgado’s head. Halfway by the spherical, Delgado attacked the physique, forcing Flores to again up.
Probably sensing he was behind, Delgado got here at Flores to start out the seventh. About 40 seconds later, it was Delgado hitting Flores with lead rights, however referee Robert Velez felt Flores was throwing low blows and deducted some extent with 1:46 left within the spherical. Delgado’s sturdy seventh, with the purpose deduction, positioned him again into the struggle.
With 1:23 left within the eighth, Flores plowed Delgado with an enormous left that smacked Delgado sq. within the face. Every fighter may get out of the best way of one another. Flores tagged Delgado with a left uppercut within the closing minute of the ninth, which Flores countered by touchdown a proper to the top. The fighters went at it inches aside; their foreheads seemingly seared collectively.
Because the tenth opened, the struggle may have gone both method. With 2:21 left within the struggle, Flores crushed Delgado with an overhand proper. With 1:23 left, Delgado popped Flores’ head again with a proper uppercut. The 2 ended the struggle like they fought the complete struggle, relentlessly swinging at one another.
Vito Mielnicki Jr.’s Prime Rank debut started sturdy with a second-round victory over Laszlo Toth (Photograph by Mikey Williams/Prime Rank)
On the undercard, Albuquerque native Matthew Griego (15-0, 10 KOs) beat late alternative Gilberto Mendoza (23-19-4, 11 KOs) for the second time, profitable an eight-round unanimous choice at flyweight. Griego defeated Mendoza by six-round unanimous choice in June 2022.
Junior middleweight Vito Mielnicki Jr. (19-1, 13 KOs) made a really impactful Prime Rank debut with a second-round disqualification victory at 1:39 over Laszlo Toth (32-9-2, 20 KOs), when Toth’s nook entered the ring to cease the scheduled 10-rounder.
Featherweight Albert Gonzalez (10-0, 6 KOs) stopped Damian Alcala (8-5, 2 KOs) at 2:51 of the third spherical in a scheduled six-rounder.
Light-weight Alan Garcia (14-0, 11 KOs) remained undefeated by stopping Maickol Lopez Villagrana (16-6, 8 KOs) at 2:34 of the third spherical of a scheduled eight-rounder.
In a scheduled six-round bantamweight weight, Steven Navarro (3-0, 2 KOs) stopped Israel Camacho (2-12) with a left hook to the physique at 2:14 of spherical one. Within the opening bout of the present, featherweight Arnold Khegai (22-1-1, 14 KOs) stopped Belmar Preciado (22-8-1, 15 KOs) on the finish of the ninth spherical of a scheduled 10-rounder.
Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been working for Ring Journal/RingTV.com since October 1997 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Affiliation of America.
Observe @JSantoliquito
