NEW YORK – Khalil Coe failed to do his job at the scale but managed to get it right in the ring.

The 26-year-old New Jersey prospect entered uncharted territory as he stopped Canada’s Buneet Bisla in the seventh round of their battle between unbeaten prospects. Coe dropped Bisla twice in the opening round and had him out on his feet to force the stoppage at 2:02 of round seven.

The bout was part of a seven-fight card Saturday evening from Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater in New York City.

Coe was more than a pound over the contracted limit during Friday’s pre-fight weigh-in. It’s an unfortunate theme early in his career but he made up for it with his latest victory. He made his presence felt early, as a stiff jab floored Bisla less than a minute into the contest. The visiting Canadian beat the count and managed to position himself for a rare double knockdown.

Both fighters landed right hands, as Bisla hit the deck while Coe’s knee touched the canvas. Referee David Fields was focused on Bisla and only issued one eight count.

Action slowed considerably after that point. Coe continued to fight behind the jab in rounds two and three but was less committed to the table as the bout progressed. Bisla spent most of the rest of the bout constantly on the move, cognizant of Coe’s power but effective enough to get the unbeaten Jersey native to plod forward rather than cut off the ring.

Coe returned to basics in round six. A straight right hand connected as Bisla loaded up with an overhand right. The cleaner punching by Coe saw Bisla’s nose return to a bloody mess after his corner previously managed to get the injury under control.

The increased activity attributed to the end of the fight, as Coe (6-0-1, 4KOs) closed in emphatic style in his first career bout to go beyond six rounds. A right uppercut snapped back the head of Bisla (7-1, 3KOs), who was defenseless to eat a number of clean shots to the chin. One final uppercut left him out on his feet along the ropes to prompt the stoppage.

Pablo Valdez inched closer to his goal of retiring as a perfect fighter. The 40-year-old Lower East Side native earned a fourth-round knockout of Argentina’s Demian Fernandez. Valdez scored two knockdowns, the latter which prompted referee Arthur Mercante Jr. to halt the contest at 0:52 of round four in their junior middleweight contest.

The fight was the first for Valdez since last September, when a knockout win was changed to a No-Contest after his post-fight drug test tested positive for a banned substance. The ‘King of New York’ resumed his winning ways versus Fernandez (14-5, 5KOs), who was effective early before body shots slowed him to a crawl and which produced both knockdowns.

Valdez connected with a left hook to the body to drop Fernandez midway through round three. Fernandez beat the count but was unable to rise from the canvas when Valdez dropped him early in round four.

Valdez turned pro in 2018, shortly after he was released from an eight-year prison sentence. His placement on Saturday’s card came at the request of longtime friend Edgar Berlanga (20-0, 16KOs), the Brooklyn-based Nuyorican who faces Ireland’s Jason Quigley (20-2, 14KOs) in the DAZN main event.

Saturday’s win advanced Valdez’s record to 7-0 with six knockouts. His goal upon turning pro was to retire with a 10-0 record and possibly win a regional title along the way.

Ofacio Falcon went the distance for the third straight time to earn his latest win.

The 23-year-old DominiRican from The Bronx had little difficulty with Puerto Rico’s Pedro Vicente, whom Falcon soundly outpointed over six rounds at lightweight. Falcon won every round on all three scorecards in the evening’s curtain raiser.

Falcon (10-0, 6KOs) fought for the first time in his home state and the second consecutive time in the Northeast. The bulk of his career has taken place in Central and Southern Florida before making his way back east. 

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox