Curtis Stevens KOs Patrick Teixeira in second round to hand Brazilian first loss
LAS VEGAS - Curtis Stevens, fighting for the first time under respected trainer John David Jackson, wasted no time showing Brazil's Patrick Teixeira that moving up in competition is no piece of cake.
Stevens, a stocky knockout artist from Brooklyn, N.Y., knocked out Teixeira at 1:04 of the second round of their scheduled 10-round middleweight bout to hand the Brazilian his first loss.
Teixeira is now 26-1 (22 KOs) while Stevens improved to 28-5 (21 KOs).
Stevens caught Teixeira with a powerful counter right hand and dropped the 24-year-old southpaw for the first time in his career. Teixeira got to his feet but was wobbly and woozy and referee Tony Weeks stopped it.
Stevens landed 14 power punches in his four minutes of work.
"The name of the game is to knock people out and that's what I did tonight," said Stevens. "I feel great to get back into the game after my one and a half year break. I really want (David) Lemieux, but I will take whatever I can get. My head is right, and I'm ready to take on whoever."
De La Hoya punishes Santomauro: Diego De la Hoya, the cousin of Hall of Famer Oscar De La Hoya, remained undefeated by stopping Rocco Santomauro in the seventh round of their eight-round fight.
Santomauro's corner threw in the towel after De La Hoya (15-0, 9 KOs), from Mexicali, Mexico, consistently beat Santomauro to the punch, landing hard left hooks and lightning-quick combinations that Santomauro had no choice but to eat.
"From the very beginning Shane Mosley has been talking about this being De La Hoya vs. Mosley III, and that inspired me to train really hard for this fight and focus on my speed and strength," De La Hoya said.
"This victory is satisfying to me because it shows all the hard work I put into my training camp. I wasn't expecting the knockout but it was very satisfying, and I believe the crowd enjoyed it. After that knockout, I knew he couldn't take anymore."
Said Santomauro (13-1, 1 KO): "I fought horrible tonight. I was very unfocused. I didn't agree with corner's decision to stop the fight. I feel physically well because I am a fighter and I'm going to keep on fighting. But, you know, all I can do is move forward. I have to keep going for my little girl."
Quigley shuts out De La Rosa: Jason Quigley showed why he is a fast-rising prospect as he shut out veteran James De La Rosa in a 10-round middleweight bout.
Quigley dominated De La Rosa and won 100-90 on all three scorecards. The 25-year-old from Donegal, Ireland, proved he could take the hardest punches De La Rosa could offer, and give back even more.
"I feel unbelievable," said Quigley. "This is the stage I wanted to headline. I hope to be back soon. I am willing, and of course, I'd love to fight Canelo someday."
"I feel pretty good about the fight," said De La Rosa. "To be honest I'm not a judge so I can't make that call. I came here to fight and fight hard. The decision, that's on the judges."
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)