Ricardo Sandoval refused to leave this one to the judges.
The flyweight contender scored a one-punch, second-round knockout of Nicaragua’s Jerson Ortiz. A left hook to the body put Ortiz down and out at 2:46 of round two in their DAZN-aired flyweight bout Saturday evening at Fox Theater in Pomona, California.
“Those body shots are the best punches in boxing,” Sandoval told Golden Boy’s Beto Duran during the DAZN in-ring post-fight interview. “A lot of people don’t use them.”
Ortiz managed to outthrow Sandoval in the brief affair but was largely ineffective in his attack, as he landed just 16-of-65 total punches (24.6%). Sandoval remained poised but focused on the task at hand in his first fight since he suffered a disputed split decision defeat to unbeaten David Jimenez last July 16 in Los Angeles. The 24-year-old from nearby Rialto pushed past that setback and focused on the gifts that positioned him among the world’s best flyweights.
Sandoval measured up Ortiz and found the opening he needed to score the bout’s lone knockdown, which functionally ended the fight. A wicked body shot forced Ortiz to the canvas, where referee Raul Caiz Jr. counted him out.
Sandoval advanced to 21-2 (16KOs), having now scored knockouts in each of his last eight wins. The lone disruption in that stretch was the aforementioned points loss to Jimenez, which cost him a shot at WBA flyweight titlist Artem Dalakian.
“I think I got way more experience now,” insisted Sandoval, who landed 17-of-48 total punches (35.4%), including 13-of-31 power shots (41.9%). “I’m more composed and it shows that I’m more mature.
“I went to the UK and won my eliminator. I didn’t get the decision here but I want to fight for that title.”
Headlining the show, Tijuana’s Luis Nery (33-1, 25KOs) and Azat Hovhannisyan (21-3, 17KOs)—an Armenian based out of Glendale, California—meet in a scheduled 12-round WBC junior featherweight title eliminator.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox