Yonnhy Perez fights better than he spells. The talented, undefeated bantamweight with the unusually spelled first name – it is pronounced “Johnny” – improved to 14-0 with 11 knockouts with a dominant, impressive fourth-round stoppage over comebacking Alexander Fedorov (18-4-1, 10 KOs) Friday on “ShoBox: The New Generation.’’
In the co-feature, former amateur boxing champion and 2004 United States Olympian, promising Mickey Bey Jr. (9-0, six KOs), registered two knockdowns en route to scoring a second-round knockout over Castulo Gonzalez (9-4, three KOs).
The doubleheader, held at an outdoor venue at Omega Products International, was promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, LLC, in association with Thompson Boxing Promotions. It aired on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).
The five-foot-seven-inch Perez, 28, of Santa Fe Springs, Calif., by way of Cartagena, Colombia, is big for a bantamweight and his size, strength and punching power were too much for Fedorov, who also had to deal with jet lag after arriving in the United States seven days ago from his native Russia.
“There’s still work to be done and I know I can get better, especially when it comes to cutting off the ring. But I feel I’m ready to step up and take on any of the top guys in the division,’’ said Perez, who won all the rounds on the three judges’ scorecards before the fight was stopped 44 seconds into the fourth.
“Learning-wise, this was a good fight for me and it being on television made it even better. I am very happy, extremely satisfied. The guy was tough, awkward and moved a lot. But I know I can hit, and if I can hurt an opponent, I can finish him. So I am not surprised the referee stopped it when he did.
A four-time Colombian national amateur champion, Perez was cut over the left eye in the third round, but it was not a factor. “I was never hurt,’’ he said. “The best is yet to come.’’
Fedorov, 30, of Ekaterinburg, Russia, was making his initial start before a paying audience in 18 months, but the layoff was not a major factor.
“More than anything, I just didn’t feel like myself in there,” he said. “I thought a week was enough time to get acclimated but it was not. Everything was off. I never felt like I usually do.
“I give Perez credit; he is a good fighter, but I am a much better fighter than I showed tonight.’’
Bey, of Cleveland, Ohio, gave his promoter, the birthday boy, Gary Shaw, a nice present as he turned what many figured to be his toughest test as a pro into one of his easiest.
After a mostly competitive opening round, the up-and-coming super featherweight twice dropped Gonzalez with left hooks and had him on the verge of going down again before the ref stepped in and halted maters at 1:41 of the second.
“For me, winning by knockout is my favorite thing to do in the ring so tonight was fun,’’ Bey, 24, said. “I was ready for eight hard rounds because he was supposed to be tough and have a great chin, but I caught him with two perfect left hooks.
“I think, now, you have to respect my power, but if you don’t, that’s OK, too, because eventually you will. I am ready to fight again. I hope it happens again really soon and on SHOWTIME.’’
Gonzalez, 29, of Lynn, Mass., by way of Puerto San Jose Escuintla, Guatemala, could never get into a rhythm.
“I felt OK in the first round, but I got nailed in the second with a good shot,’’ he said. “I think I have too much heart for my own good because rather than clinch and try to gather and compose myself, I continued to try and fight.
“I feel terrible about it, but I can’t argue with the referee’s decision to stop the fight. This just wasn’t my night to shine.’’
Nick Charles (blow-by-blow) and Steve Farhood (color analyst) called the action from ringside. The executive producer of ShoBox is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.
Friday’s bouts will re-air as follows:
DAY CHANNEL
Saturday, Oct. 6, at Midnight ET/PT SHOTOO
Monday, Oct. 8, at 10 p.m. ET/PT SHO EXTREME
Tuesday, Oct. 9, at Midnight ET/PT SHO EXTREME
Thursday, Oct. 11, at 11 p.m. ET/PT SHOTOO
The next “ShoBox” telecast is Friday, Oct. 19 (SHOWTIME, 11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast). In the main event, undefeated heavyweight Travis Walker (25-0, 19 KOs) of Tallahassee, Fla., faces T.J. Walker (11-1, 7 KOs) of Newark, N.J. Once-beaten junior welterweight Patrick Lopez (11-1, 9 KOs) of Londonderry, N.H., takes on Jesus “Chuy” Rodriguez (16-2, 5 KOs) of Salinas, Calif., in the eight-round co-feature.
Tomorrow/Saturday, Oct. 6, on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, Sam Peter defends his WBC interim heavyweight title against Jameel McCline on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast).
For information on Showtime Sports Programming, including exclusive video, photos and news links on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING and EliteXC mixed martial arts telecasts, please go to www.SHO.com/sports.
About ShoBox: The New Generation
Since its inception in July 2001, the critically acclaimed SHOWTIME boxing series, ShoBox: The New Generation has featured young talented fighters matched tough. The ShoBox philosophy is to televise crowd-pleasing and competitive fights while providing a proving ground for willing prospects determined to fight for a world title. The growing list of fighters who have appeared on ShoBox and advanced to garner world titles includes Leonard Dorin, Scott Harrison, Juan Diaz, Jeff Lacy, Ricky Hatton, Joan Guzman, Juan Urango, David Diaz and Robert Guerrero. Kelly Pavlik became the 20th boxing fighter who has fought on ShoBox to win a world title with his recent victory over Jermain Taylor.