Alexis Rocha was brutally beaten Saturday in Indio, California.
The 147-pound contender capped off a dominant performance by stopping defeated Anthony Young in the fifth round of a scheduled 12-round tournament at the Fantasy Springs Casino.
Roach (23-1, 15 KOs) solidified his position as the WBO No. 1 contender, giving way to only champion Terence Crawford.
ALEXIS ROCHA ENDS THIS 🔥#RochaYoung pic.twitter.com/ExXdATCVEB
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) May 28, 2023
“I’m very hard on myself,” he said. “..I give myself about a ‘C’.” I still know that I can develop much more. And from here we will go.”
Anyone else would have given him a better rating.
The left-hander successfully broke Young (24-3, 8 KOs) by constantly pounding his body and hitting one powerful left to the head after another.
Young had success countering here and there, but couldn’t stop Rocha from him and couldn’t dodge the winner’s big bombs.
The end came in an instant as Rocha landed hard left, sending Young to the ropes and the canvas. He was able to get up, but referee Thomas Taylor stopped the fight after looking Young in the eye.
The official stoppage time is 2:15 of Round 5.
Rocha will have to wait until Crawford enters the ring. On July 29 in Las Vegas, the title holder will face Errol Spence Jr. for the undisputed welterweight championship.
Rocha will be an interested observer.
“I’m a mandatory WBO,” he said. “I want the winner (Crawford-Spence) next. And that’s all.”
