Junior Welterweight Elvis Rodriguez returns to the win column in style
After suffering his first and only loss, to Kenneth Sims Jr back on May 22, junior welterweight Elvis “The Dominican Kid” Rodriguez (11-1-1, 10 KO’s) has returned to his winning ways. Rodriguez achieved this by stopping the previously undefeated “El Pivi” Juan Pablo Romero (14-0, 9 KO’s) in the eighth round of their prizefight.
Prior to his loss at the hands of Sims, the Dominican Kid was easily catching the eyes of fans due his high activity level. Rodriguez managed to fight a whopping five times during the 2020 pandemic while competing in ‘the Bubble’ at Top Rank. During that run, he claimed four straight knockouts and one decision. Now that he has righted his career, Rodriguez can focus on securing some more meaningful opponents.
As for Romero, this was only his second appearance in the U.S. While it was clear that El Pivi was not here to just roll over and play dead, it was equally evident that he did not have the skillset to hold his own with Rodriguez. The 31-year-old had been stepping up in competition and came to fight. Had Rodriguez not been careful, he very well could have suffered another upset loss. Luckily for the Dominican Kid, he did not overlook El Pivi and was able to beat him without a great deal of adversity.
LETHAL LEFT INJECTION
Rodriguez began the bout in very sleepy fashion, doing little outside of moving constantly and pawing with the jab. Romero, however, elected to let his hands go. While he did not land with a great deal, he was definitely testing the water. In the second, El Pivi began sinking his knuckles into pay dirt. Romero was careful to maintain a balanced attack, by targeting the head and body near equally.
To his credit, toward the end of the period, Rodriguez was finding his range and timing. When striking purposefully, it was evident that the Dominican Kid was the superior athletic specimen. He had faster hands, better movement and kept landing a nasty hook uppercut combo. During the third period, Rodriguez became both the ring general and more aggressive fighter. Romero had no intentions of retreating, however. Yet, his courage only made him readily available to Rodriguez’s hooks and uppercuts.
Trouble was, as they battled with savage intelligence, El Pivi was clipped and dropped by a menacing straight left-hand. Romero got to his feet and finished the round without issue, but he was clearly shook up. The knockdown was the first time he was on the canvas in his career. After a near full round of battling shoulder to shoulder in the fifth, the Dominican Kid dumped Romero on the canvas with the exact same straight left. Juan Pablo Romero was able to sit up on the seat of his pants, but never truly attempted to rise and was counted out by Robert Hoyle. The commanding performance stands as a fantastic bounce back win.
By: Bakari Simpson
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