Arnold Barboza breezes by Antonio Moran!
Arnold Barboza Jr (25-0, 10KOs) will return to the ring for the first time in nearly a year when he takes on Antonio Moran (26-4-1, 19KOs) in a ten round junior welterweight bout. In his last ring outing, the number #3 (WBO) and #5 (WBC) ranked contender easily defeated Alex Saucedo by unanimous decision in October of 2020.
The unbeaten contender is inching closer and closer to a world title opportunity. Here, he will look to turn away the challenge of Moran. Moran is currently unranked and will look put himself back in title contention. Moran, who was stopped in seven rounds against WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney in 2019, has won his last two fights.
Barboza, the overwhelming favorite, started the fight by boxing beautifully, firing off his left jab. That would be accompanied by left and right hands to head and body of his opponent. The accuracy and power of the California native’s punches would burst open the nose of Moran. The corner would confirm the nose to be broken after the second round.
From the moment the bell rang, it was all Barboza. Flashing speed, power, punch placement and versatility, the highly rated contender provided another impressive performance, albeit a one-sided one. For Moran, he showed toughness by fighting through a broken nose. After the conclusion of ten rounds, Barboza would win the bout via a unanimous decision. The scores were 99-91 (x2) and 100-90.
Barboza improves his record to 26-0, 10 KO’s. He now awaits either a world title opportunity in 2022 or a bigger fight against a world rated contender. Regis Prograis, Jose Zepeda and Jose Ramirez all have major appeal as potential opponents if a world title opportunity isn’t next for Barboza.
By: Jerrell Fletcher
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