Erick Rosa ended a career-long ring absence with a stoppage win to set up his biggest fight yet. 

The unbeaten 23-year-old Dominican didn't show any signs of ring rust in a one-sided stoppage win over Venezuela's Orlando Pino (14-1, 8KOs).

Rosa (6-0, 2KOs) was in charge every step of the way versus a disinterested Pino, whose corner disallowed him to come out prior to the start of round nine Friday evening at Pabellon de Esgrima in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. 

With the win, Rosa will now attempt to upgrade his WBA 'Regular' strawweight title versus full WBA champ Thammanoon Niyomtrong (24-0, 9KOs). Shuan Boxing, Rosa's promoter, won a purse bid earlier this summer and plans to stage the fight in early-to-mid October. 

The first order of business was to get Rosa back into the ring. Much of his 20-month ring absence was directly attributable to three separate failed attempts to move forward with an ordered title consolidation bout versus Niyomtrong. 

A homecoming was granted for the diminutive southpaw, who has fought in his Santo Domingo and in scheduled 10- and 12-round bouts for the entirety of his three-year pro career. 

His next fight will take place either on a Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) show in Las Vegas or Minneapolis, or on a Shuan Boxing-promoted event in Haiti. Their bout must take place no later than October 19, per an existing WBA ruling. 

The non-title fight was permitted for Rosa, who'd been out of the ring longer (20 months) than his prior in-ring pro experience (14 months). Approval from the WBA came with the condition that Rosa's secondary WBA 'Regular' strawweight title was not at stake. 

Thailand’s Niyomtrong (24-0, 9KOs) has held the WBA ‘Super’ strawweight title since June 2016, which is the longest active and uninterrupted title reign among male boxers. Dominican Republic’s Rosa (5-0, 1KO) won the interim WBA title in a July 2021 points win over unbeaten Ricardo Astuvilca. He upgraded to WBA ‘Regular’ titleholder with a win over Vic Saludar in their December 2021 bout to determine the final mandatory challenger. 

Niyomtrong-Rosa first went to a purse bid hearing last December in Orlando, Florida, held during the WBA’s annual convention. Petchyindee Boxing Promotions posted $140,000, outbidding Shuan Boxing ($122,000) who hoped to bring the fight either to D.R. or on a Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) card in early 2023.

The fight was budgeted to take place March 1 in Nakhon Sawan, Thailand. As previously reported by Boxing Scene, their March 1 bout ran into trouble when Rosa (5-0, 1KOs) was detained by Thai immigration officials upon arrival in Bangkok. Rosa’s passport did not meet the requirements for Dominicans to travel to Thailand, though it remains unclear why he was not stopped upon boarding a plane en route to Thailand.

A breakdown in communication between his team–led by promoter Belgica Pena of Shuan Boxing—and Petpiya Fight left Rosa’s travel status in limbo before receiving permission to return home. The development thus killed plans for the fight, to the detriment of Petpiya who invested heavily into the event.

It was determined by the WBA that both parties were at fault prior to ordering a fresh round of talks with an assigned March 28 date for a purse bid should the two sides fail to reach terms. A deal was reportedly reached that would see the fight land on a summertime PBC event. Unresolved issues forced the WBA to go back to the well.

Niyomtrong has made eleven successful title defenses, along with four wins during his interim title reign. He has not fought since a twelve-round, unanimous decision over countryman, close friend and former long-reigning WBC titlist Wanheng ‘TBE’ Menayothin last July 20 in Chonburi, Thailand.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox