Ramos taken from the ring on a stretcher after accidental fall in third round
Justin Figueroa’s middleweight fight with Luis Caraballo Ramos ended in a no contest after Ramos was injured in the third round.
Ramos entered with a reputation as a puncher. All eight of his wins had come by knockout, including a first-round stoppage two weeks earlier against previously unbeaten Adrian Valdez Reyes.
The Puerto Rican pressed the fight from the opening bell. He stepped forward, throwing heavy hooks and right hands while Figueroa stayed compact behind his guard, taking a look and measuring distance. Ramos’ pressure likely secured the first round.
Figueroa began to settle in during the second. He started with the jab, placed a few straight rights behind it, and found better rhythm as he kept Ramos turning and tried to bring his own offense together.
The fight took a sudden turn late in the third. Figueroa stepped in with punches and pushed Ramos toward the corner while letting his hands go. The fighters locked up in close quarters and lost balance. As they fell backward, Ramos’ head struck the canvas.
Ramos remained down as medical personnel entered the ring immediately. He was fitted with a cervical collar before being taken out of the ring on a stretcher.
Referee David Fields ruled the fall accidental and the bout was declared a no contest.
Figueroa’s record remains 14-0 with 11 knockouts. Ramos stands at 8-8-1 with eight knockouts.
John Leonardo Defeats Edgar Joe Cortes by Unanimous Decision
John “Bodyshot” Leonardo returned after fifteen months away from the ring and earned an eight-round unanimous decision over Edgar Joe Cortes in the super bantamweight co-main event.
Cortes came out quickly, beating Leonardo to the punch in the opening rounds and letting his hands go while Leonardo worked to rebuild his stance after the long spell away.
Leonardo began taking control in the third. He stepped forward behind the jab and started digging to the body, forcing Cortes to give ground. Once his timing returned, Leonardo set his feet and let combinations go.
The Manalapan fighter kept walking Cortes down through the middle rounds, touching the body and bringing uppercuts through the guard. A clean left uppercut in the sixth round stood out as one of the sharper punches of the fight.
Over the final rounds Leonardo’s pressure and cleaner work carried the scoring.
Judges returned scores of 79–73, 78–74 and 77–75.
Leonardo improves to 13-1-1 with six knockouts. Cortes falls to 9-9-1 with one knockout.