Lightweight Jose Roman (23-1-1, 16 KOs) delivered a devastating opening round knockout over Carlos Cardenas (20-11-1, 13 KOs) in the “Path to Glory” main event Friday night from the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, Calif.
Roman sized up the shorter Cardenas early in the first, and before the round could cross the halfway point, Roman unleashed a multitude of punches that sealed his knockout win (1:26 mark).
“I shook him very early in the first,” said Roman, who is from Garden Grove, Calif. “I knew he was hurt so I just kept attacking him until he finally dropped.”
“Even though it was a quick fight, we all witnessed what Jose Roman is capable of,” said Ken Thompson after the fight. “Bigger fights are certainly in his immediate future.”
With the win, Roman extends his winning streak to nine.
John Delperdang (7-1, 7 KOs) continued his knockout winning ways by dispatching Colombia’s Andres Figueroa (7-2, 5 KOs) in the fourth round of a scheduled six rounder. Delperdang, who is from Ontario, Calif., cornered Figueroa at the end of the first round with an avalanche of punches that floored Figueroa.
In the fourth, Delperdang continued his aggressive attack and forced the referee’s hand. Raul Caiz, Sr. had seen enough and put a stop to the relentless onslaught at the 2:12 mark.
“This is how I win fights,” Delperdang said after the fight. “I cracked him with a lot of heavy shots and it just wore him down. He couldn’t stop me.”
Junior lightweight Michael Norato (3-0, 1 KO) remains undefeated after scoring a unanimous decision win over Miguel Barajas (2-1, 1 KO). Norato, tall for the division at nearly six feet tall, kept busy throughout the four round fight. The judges rewarded his work ethic to the tune of a sweep – all three judges scored the bout 40-36 in favor of the Los Angeles product.
In what was perhaps the most anticipated fight on Friday night’s undercard, amateur standout Ruben Villa tasted victory in the professional ranks for the first time.
Villa (1-0, 1 KO), a top-flight amateur with tremendous upside, is as good as advertised. In his first professional fight – after a stellar amateur career that saw him net back-to-back National Golden Gloves Championships – Villa dispatched challenger Gerardo Molina (1-2, 1 KO) in the first round on Friday night.
Villa struck early with a counter left hook that put Molina on his heels and onto the canvas. Moments later, Villa, who is from Salinas, Calif., rocked Molina with a flurry of punches, knocking him out at the 2:25 mark of the opening round.
“It felt great to get that first win,” Villa said. “I didn’t go in thinking knockout, but I knew after the first knockdown that I was going to end it early. I had a bunch of friends and family in attendance. I’m glad I gave them something to smile about.”
“Ruben looked fantastic tonight,” said Ken Thompson, president of Thompson Boxing Promotions. “He gave us a glimpse into his immense potential. Ruben has a very bright future ahead of him and we are excited to continue to feature him on our Southern California shows.”
Villa is co-promoted through Thompson Boxing and Banner Promotions.
Argentina’s Neri Romero (2-0, 2 KOs) started the “Path to Glory” action with a stunning first round knockout of Mexico’s Pedro Dimas (0-1). Romero connected with a left hook to the body that crumpled the outmatched Dimas. Official stoppage time came at the :58 mark.
