Raul Curiel landed the quickest win of his profession in his most vital struggle up to now.
A left uppercut brought on Brad Solomon to show away as he fell to the canvas, the place he remained all through their DAZN-aired foremost occasion. Referee Ray Corona reached the rely of ten, offering Curiel with a knockout win at 0:44 of spherical two of their welterweight bout Saturday night at Commerce On line casino & Resort in Commerce, California.
The feat supplied the usually soft-spoken Curiel with an excessive sense of confidence heading into the brand new yr.
“I need everybody in my weight class,” Curiel instructed DAZN/Golden Boy’s Brandi Flores after the win. “I don’t worry anybody. I’ve a (regional) belt. I need everybody.”
Saturday’s win ought to assist help that trigger. Getting thus far was extra of a wrestle than the struggle itself. The 27-year-old Guadalajara native—who trains below Corridor of Fame cornerman Freddie Roach—hadn’t fought in precisely 52 weeks, a letdown following a productive 2021 marketing campaign that noticed him put up three knockout wins versus respectable competitors.
Solomon represented probably the most skilled foe to this point for Curiel, although at age 39—regardless of getting into the ring to Alphaville’s timeless traditional ‘Eternally Younger’—carried lots of miles on his boxing odometer. The veteran fringe contender from Douglasville, Georgia misplaced 4 of his final 5 begins, together with knockout defeats to Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Blair Cobbs.
Curiel was capable of stack up properly towards that class, boxing calmly within the opening spherical whereas making each punch rely. He adopted go well with in spherical two, connecting with a jab after which following up with a wonderfully positioned left uppercut.
The shot caught Solomon on the nostril, holding his face in ache as he went down. Solomon briefly rolled over because the rely was being issued, unable to rise to his ft as Corona counted him out. The celebration was delayed as Curiel needed to ensure Solomon was in good well being—comparatively talking—earlier than making his subsequent transfer.
“That is as a sport,” famous Curiel. “We’re males attempting to feed our household. I needed to ensure he was OK.
Solomon fell to 29-6 (9KOs) with the loss and sure used up at the same time as a serviceable opponent on the televised circuit.
Curiel improved to 12-0 (10KOs). The win was his fifth profession second-round knockout, beating his earliest end by 32 seconds, which got here final January 2 in Dallas, Texas.
The bout headlined the ultimate DAZN present of 2022 for Golden Boy Promotions.
Jake Donovan is a senior author for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox