Jeison Rosario impressed Derrick James by beating Julian Williams so thoroughly in their junior middleweight title fight.
The Dominican underdog bloodied and battered Williams on his way to producing a huge upset January 18 in Philadelphia, Williams’ hometown. According to Rosario’s handlers, his career-changing performance was the byproduct of the 25-year-old fighter finally taking training seriously.
James is certain, though, that the newly crowned IBF, IBO and WBA champion wouldn’t have nearly as much success against Jermell Charlo in a 154-pound title unification fight.
“I think Jermell will win the fight,” James, who trains Charlo, told BoxingScene.com. “He’s a great boxer. Rosario looked really good against J-Rock [Williams], but I feel like Jermell’s gonna get him. Rosario’s a great fighter, but Jermell’s speed and his athleticism will come into play. His ability will come into play.”
Houston’s Charlo (33-1, 17 KOs), the WBC super welterweight champion, and Rosario (20-1-1, 14 KOs) could meet in the next bout for both boxers once the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end. Charlo-Rosario would be contested for all of boxing’s recognized 154-pound crowns except for the WBO belt, which is owned by Brazil’s Patrick Teixeira (31-1, 22 KOs).
Most Internet sports books listed Williams (27-2-1, 16 KOs, 1 NC) as at least a 30-1 favorite to beat Rosario, an optional opponent, in a main event FOX televised from Temple University’s Liacouras Center.
A right hand by Rosario opened a cut along Williams’ left eyelid in the second round, which blurred Williams’ vision at times. Rosario’s right-left combination then hurt Williams in the fifth round.
Rosario jumped on a wobbled Williams and eventually caught the former champion with a right uppercut and then a left hook that left Williams slumped against the ropes. Referee Benjy Esteves stopped the action at 1:37 of the fifth round.
“In boxing, like life, you never know what will happen,” James said of Rosario’s victory over Williams. “Some people get very focused. He was very focused, his skill set was great and I think he was up for that fight that day. He wasn’t gonna take a loss. He stepped up and he fought great. He fought phenomenally. It was a very competitive fight up until the third round or so. When J-Rock got cut, that’s when it started to turn a little bit, in the second round. That’s when Rosario picked it up and J-Rock kind of faded a little bit.”
Four weeks earlier, Charlo won back his WBC belt by knocking out Tony Harrison in the 11th round of their rematch at Toyota Arena in Ontario, California. Charlo knocked down Detroit’s Harrison (28-3, 21 KOs) once in the second round and twice in the 11th round before referee Jack Reiss stopped their FOX main event.
“I was pleased, especially down the stretch,” James said of Charlo’s performance. “It was a tough fight. He totally changed the fight. It was like they both pushed each other to the next level. Jermell put it together toward the end and he kept fighting in the middle rounds. Even though Tony had some good spots and some good rounds, Jermell kept fighting and started landing some shots. And then he landed that same he hook he landed in the second round. It was great. I loved it.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.