The favored fighters all won on tonight’s Ring City show.
Former title challenger Brandon Adams had to fight an opponent who came in on short notice, but the 31-year-old Californian took care of business, stopping Sonny Duversonne in the second round of their Ring City USA main event on NBC Sports Network.
Adams (22-3, 14 KO) looked pretty sharp in the opening round of the eight-round bout, then dug in with some left hooks, got Duversonne (11-3-2, 8 KO) in the corner, and just kept firing. Referee Jack Reiss urged Duversonne, 30, to get out of the corner, but when the Florida native didn’t and wasn’t throwing enough back, Reiss stopped the fight. Duversonne complained, but Reiss explained his position, and it was fair.
You have to feel for Duversonne a bit, though, because this is a guy who has stepped up and really gotten himself out there recently. He fought on Top Rank’s Oct. 9 card, losing to prospect Lorenzo Simpson, though Duversonne did score a knockdown in that fight. And he had even more success on PBC’s Nov. 4 card, stepping in and giving Chordale Booker hell in a fight that really, Duversonne probably should have won, instead losing a controversial split decision.
This was his third fight in 55 days, and Adams, who has good pro experience, just took it to him and overwhelmed him early. Adams was originally meant to face 25-year-old Ukrainian prospect Serhii Bohachuk, who has built up some online buzz with no real TV exposure.
“My game plan stayed the same from the beginning, seek and destroy. I wanted to come out here and win, it didn’t matter who you guys put in front of me,” he said of fighting a last-minute replacement.
Watching from home, Bohachuk (18-0, 18 KO) Tweeted that he still wants to face the veteran:
Good. Now let makes this fight happen.
— Serhii Bohachuk (@SBohachuk) December 4, 2020
“I don’t Tweet,” Adams said with a smile when it was brought to his attention. “But if the opportunity presents itself, you’re damn right we’re gonna fight.”
It was a good Ring City USA main event the first time, and it would be a good one to make for early 2021.
Yeritsyan is a 25-year-old Armenian welterweight prospect trained by Freddie Roach, and he did a number on the veteran Montes, a 31-year-old Mexican you’ve probably seen at some point or other, likely in defeat. He’s tough as all hell, takes a great shot, but he also takes a lot of shots, and that’s what forced referee Jack Reiss to stop this 18 seconds into the sixth round.
I have no doubt we’ll see Yeritsyan (14-0, 12 KO) a lot more going forward, as he’s got power, talent, looks tough, and Roach doesn’t back guys who can’t scrap, really, especially anymore. As for Montes (36-10-1, 25 KO), we’ll surely see him test more guys, too. He’s not close to a contender and never has been and never will be, but he’ll give you some rounds and a decent show. If he could make 135 again he might qualify for a shot at Devin Haney’s belt, OH!
A good test matchup for Ceballo, a 26-year-old welterweight from Brooklyn who boasts five New York Golden Gloves titles, which is not always the indicator of pro success you might expect anymore because it’s not the 50s or 70s. On paper, Ceballo is a little old for where he’s at as a pro, and he was about the same level of prospect, you could reason, that Brian Mendoza was a year ago when Gomez beat Mendoza on a Top Rank card.
But Ceballo (12-0, 6 KO) looked good here, picking up a clear decision win on scores of 96-94, 98-91, and 99-90. BLH had the fight 98-91 for Ceballo; he didn’t score a knockdown for that score, Gomez was docked a point in the 10th round for losing his mouthpiece too many times.
Ceballo will want to get moving and he doesn’t really leap off the screen as some incredible blue chipper, but he’s a good prospect, smart fighter, sound, solid amateur background if not exactly an elite Olympian or anything. He handled the tough and game Gomez (10-2, 8 KO) very well, doing exactly what he should have done and shutting the 27-year-old from Utah down for the most part. Gomez had his moments when he could get close, and he fought to the bell every round, but couldn’t really get anything sustained going.
