The Undefeated WBC World Middleweight Champion turns in a sterling performance, breaking down the gutty Hogan and flattening him with a single left hook in the seventh.
Jermall Charlo continues to make his case as the world’s best middleweight.
Charlo calmly broke down rugged contender Dennis Hogan, putting him away in the seventh round with a sweeping left hook to make the second defense of his WBC World Middleweight title.
“Of course, my power prevailed tonight. Lion’s Only, we’re 30-0,” said Charlo. “Ronnie (Shields) told me to cut him off. I just threw the shot and I made sure I threw it right on the money.”
Coming off successive decision wins, Charlo (30-0, 22 KOs) looked to return to his explosive ways versus Hogan.
Hogan, a tough, awkward boxer-puncher, took some time to figure out. Charlo was busy in the first but couldn’t time Hogan’s rhythm—and caught a left hook coming in.
The second and third were equally spirited. Charlo applied heavy pressure, willing to eat the occasional power shot in order to land his own. It paid off in the fourth, when they traded hooks. Charlo’s hook landed first, and landed hard. So hard, Hogan hit the canvas, rolled over and returned to his original position on the mat in one move.
But the game Irishman made it to his feet, playing keep away as Charlo sought to finish. Hogan made it out of the frame, but the end was near. Charlo landed more power shots in the fifth and sixth. The end came swiftly in the seventh. Charlo, ever the aggressor, drove Hogan back before feinting a one-two and coming back with a hard left hook. The blow caught Hogan flush on the jaw, dropping him to the canvas and nearly halfway out of the ropes.
Again, Hogan (28-3-1, 7 KOs) stumbled to his feet but referee Charlie Fitch wisely called it off at 0:28 of the stanza.
The champion couldn’t stop smiling afterward.
“I made it through 2019 and we’re going to 2020 with 20/20 vision,” Charlo said. “Shout out to Dennis Hogan for giving me real competition and for coming up to fight me.”
Matt Korobov suffers a shoulder injury in round 2 of his interim title bout against @ChrisEubankJr and is unable to continue.#EubankKorobov pic.twitter.com/ZUIGhyGWUM
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 8, 2019
Chris Eubank Jr. defeats Matt Korobov, Korobov forced to retire with injury
Chris Eubank Jr. won a second-round TKO over Matt Korobov when Korobov was forced to retire when he suffered an injury to his left shoulder after throwing a punch.
“I felt like I was about to get my swagger on,” said Eubank, who is now 29-2 (22 KOs). “He just turned around and stopped I was going to go jump on him. I guess something happened with his shoulder.”
Official time was 0:34.
Korobov (28-3-1, 14 KOs) had stepped out of an exchange when he motioned to his shoulder, his face showing agony. Referee Steve Willis immediately stopped the action and called the ringside doctor over. They ultimately ruled that Korobov could not continue.
"I was trying to throw the left hand straight, and I just felt the muscle immediately, like I pulled it,” Korobov explained. “It was a lot of pain right away. I couldn't fight with just one arm, especially being a southpaw."
As for Eubank, he now looks to 2020, and perhaps a unification versus Jermall Charlo.
“I’m the winner, I’m going to move forward and challenge for these belts,” said Eubank. “This wasn’t my dream. My dream was to come here to America and make a statement.”
The bout appeared to be shaping up to be a good scrap. In the first, Eubank established his jab downstairs but the bigger shots came from Korobov, who landed two big lefts. Moments after the second began, it was all over.
Iwasa ends Tapales in round 11 #TapalesIwasa #CharloHogan pic.twitter.com/Uv8b8YYeAN
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 8, 2019
Ryosuke Iwasa stops Marlon Tapales, wins interim title
Ryosuke Iwasa toppled Marlon Tapales with a single overhand left in the eleventh to capture the IBF World Interim Junior Featherweight title.
Iwasa (27-3, 17 KOs) dominated the second half of this battle of southpaws, slowly breaking Tapales down and then putting him away.
Tapales (33-3, 16 KOs) got off to a hot start early on, winging power punches. Iwasa remained cool, working the jab from the outside. In the third, he was awarded a knockdown when referee Shada Murdaugh ruled that a punch dropped Tapales despite Tapales’ protest that he dropped to a knee because of a hard clash of heads. Replays proved him correct.
Iwasa went back to work in the fourth, mixing up his attack with occasional power shots. He systematically broke Tapales down, landing up and downstairs. An overhand left in the eleventh finished the job. Iwasa struggled to his feet but he could barely stand straight upon rising, prompting Murdaugh to call a halt to the bout at 1:09 of the eleventh.
"I knew that I had him hurt in the 11th round and I was ready for the finish if the referee had let him keep fighting,” Iwasa said afterward. “It was a tough fight but I trained really hard for this performance.
"We're ready for anyone next. I'm going to keep working hard to become a world champion again next year."
For a closer look at Charlo vs Hogan, check out our fight night page.
