Super welterweight contender Justin DeLoach was sensational Friday night in the main event of the latest edition of ShoBox: The New Generation. The longtime Showtime boxing series has produced countless eventual world champions and by the looks of DeLoach, he could be added to that list.
Saul Rodriguez improved to 21-0-1 (15) by edging fellow lightweight Oscar Bravo via split decision over 10 hard-fought rounds. Bravo seemed to be in control of the action for much of the fight and even knocked Rodriguez off his feet in the fifth, but it was Rodriguez’ higher punch output and constant pressure that swayed the judges in his favor. Two of the judges favored Rodriguez with scores of 95-94 and 97-92, while the third official had it 95-94 for Bravo, who fell to 22-7 with 10 KOs.
Cruiserweight prospect Andrew Tabiti took out Quantis Graves by making him stay on his stool in between rounds six and seven. Tabiti (14-0, 12 KOs) controlled the pace and aggressively pursued Graves from the start. Graves (11-1-1, 4 KOs) was dropped by a right to the body in the sixth and when the round was over, so was the fight.