John Leonardo used his size and skill to break down Frank Gonzalez, forcing a sixth round stoppage in the eight round junior featherweight main event on Saturday at Tropicana Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, N.J.
Leonardo (11-1-1, 5 KOs) of Manalapan, N.J. rocked the Floridian Gonzalez (12-6, 6 KOs) with a left hook and rained down punches until the referee intervened to stop the beating. The win was the fourth straight for Leonardo, 23, while the 27-year-old Gonzalez loses for the third straight time.
The fight headlined a Boxing Insider Promotions card, the first in promoter Larry Goldberg’s hometown after all of their previous events were in New York City. The show was the first time that Tropicana has hosted a professional boxing show in seven years.
Local favorite Justin Figueroa (9-0, 7 KOs) scored a fourth round stoppage of Antoni Armas (13-8, 8 KOs), using his range and boxing ability to take apart the Maracay, Venezuela native. Armas remained on his stool after the fourth round, claiming an injury to his left shoulder.
Figueroa, 25, celebrated with his trademark worm dance in the middle of the ring after being announced as the winner.
Avious Griffin (14-0, 13 KOs) of Chattanooga, Tenn. finished the game Lesther Espino (8-6, 6 KOs) of Managua, Nicaragua in round 5 of an 8-round welterweight bout. Griffin, 30, dropped Espino with a sharp 1-2 and then battered Espino along the ropes to force the stoppage.
Heavyweight prospect Pryce Taylor (4-0, 2 KOs) of Brooklyn, N.Y. went the distance for the second straight time, outpunching undersized fighter Lawrence King Jr (2-2, 1 KO) over four rounds, winning by unanimous scores of 40-36 twice and 39-37. Taylor, a four-time national finalist, imposed himself on the defensively sound King, making the outcome a foregone conclusion.
Taylor, 27, is trained by Benny Roman out of Cops and Kids Boxing in Brooklyn, and is managed by Keith Sullivan.
Dwyke Flemmings Jr. of Paterson, N.J. battered Jonathon Hampton (3-5, 1 KO) of Gary, Indiana for four rounds, forcing a stoppage at the 2:54 of a six-round scheduled junior middleweight bout. The 20-year-old Flemmings (7-0, 7 KOs) was a standout amateur, making it to the final of the 2018 Junior Olympics.
Brooklyn-based lightweight prospect Koby Williams got his pro career started on a positive note, finishing off Virginia’s Kevin Hicks (1-3, 1 KO) with a straight left hand to the body. Williams, 25, is trained by Jose Luis Guzman.
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