Rolando “Rolly” Romero boasted for weeks that all it would take was one punch to end his fight with Gervonta “Tank” Davis. He was correct. Unfortunately for him, he was the one to get it with it. After weeks of trash talk, this fight was billed as the next Hagler Vs. Hearns. Coming into the fight Davis KO’d 24 of 26 opponents while Romero dispatched 12 of his 14 foes in the same fashion. With gaudy KO percentages like that fireworks were guaranteed. What we got on fight might however did not even come close. Even though Romero promised a one-punch knockout in round 1, he came out with a much more measured approach. He jabbed well and utilized his size to keep Gervonta at bay. “Tank” employed a tactical approach himself, countering where he could and looking to land his power shots.

While not the firefight we expected, it was a close affair heading into the sixth round. Late in the round, the fans at Barclays Center got exactly what they paid for. While along the ropes, Romero jumped in with a right hand and was countered with a beautiful left hook that sent Romero face-first into the ropes before he landed on the canvas. Romero got to his feet but referee David Fields stopped the fight at 2:49 of round six. At the time of the stoppage, Davis was ahead 48-47 on two scorecards, with one judge favoring Romero with the same score.

With the win Davis (27-0,25KO’s) defended his WBA (Regular) lightweight title for a second time. Romero (14-1, 12KO’s) with the loss suffered his first professional defeat.