Shafikov, Ramirez, Monaghan, Zewksi Win at Cosmo

By Francisco Salazar from ringside …

Cosmopolitan Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas - Unbeaten junior welterweight and 2012 Jose Ramirez stopped Anthony Arellano in the sixth and final round. Arellano  (7-3-1, 3 KOs) had to deal with a cut he suffered above his left eye in the first round. As if that did not complicate matters, Ramirez (13-0, 10 KOs) used his strength to walk Arellano down during a majority of the fight. Arellano was game, landing an occasional overhand right to the head of Ramirez. As the bout progressed, Ramirez's power began to take its toll on Arellano. Although they were somewhat wide at times, Ramirez's hooks and crosses found their mark to the head and body of Arellano. Towards the end of the fight, Ramirez pinned Arellano against the ropes and let his hands go. During an exchange, a combination stunned Arellano, backing him up against the ropes. Before Ramirez could follow up, referee Pat Russell immediately stepped in and stopped the bout at 2:50.

Welterweight Mikael Zewski won a hard-fought 10 round majority decision over Jeremy Bryan. Zewski (26-0, 20 KOs) suffered a cut over his right eye in the first round from a punch. Zewski claimed it was the first time he was cut as a pro, but his corner did a good job stopping the blood from coming out. The taller Zewski was able to dictate the pace, beating Bryan (17-5, 7 KOs) to the punch with hooks and crosses. Bryan would sneak straight right hands to the head and body of Zewski. But it was Zewski that landed the more telling blows as he would get the nod on two judges' scorecards, 97-93. The third judge scored the bout 95-95.

Light heavyweight Sean Monaghan stopped Daniel Regi in the third round. Monaghan(23-0, 15 KOs) landed at will against the shorter Regi. Monaghan would land two or three punches for every one that Regi (20-12, 9 KOs) threw. In the third round, Monaghan dropped Regi with a left-right combination, dropping him again later in the round with a barrage of punches. The end came when Monaghan dropped Regi to a knee with a right to the head. Regi stood up, but referee Russell Mora waved the fight over at 2:52.

In the opening bout of the Top Rank card, welterweight Egidijus Kavaliauskas scored a spectacular second round knockout over Jaime Herrera in a scheduled eight round bout. Herrera had scored consecutive wins over Top Rank prospects Michael Finney and Mike Jones, but ran into a wall in Kavaliauskas. At the beginning of the second round, Kavaliauskas dropped Herrera twice. Moments after getting up, Kavaliauskas landed a left hook to the head that dropped Herrera hard to the canvas. Referee Pat Russell immediately waved the fight over at 46 seconds.

Francisco A. Salazar has written for Boxingscene.com since September of 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Salazar also covers boxing for the Ventura County (CA) Star newspaper, RingTV, and Knockout Nation. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing