Dominican Republic fighter Lenin Castillo was left unconscious and shaking on the canvas after suffering a brutal second-round KO against Callum Smith in their bout in London.
Fighting on the undercard of the blockbuster heavyweight showdown between home hero Anthony Joshua and Ukrainian star Oleksandr Usyk at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Smith and Castillo contested a light heavyweight bout which ended in brutal fashion in the second round when Smith caught his rival with a big right hand to the temple.
The blow sent Castillo onto the canvas, where his head rested against the ropes while his legs twitched uncontrollably.
The referee immediately waved off the fight as medical staff entered the ring to attend to the floored Castillo.
Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn updated fans by letting them know that Castillo was “responsive” but described the knockout as “brutal”.
Smith picked up a win on his light heavyweight debut in North London, bouncing back from his unanimous decision defeat to Mexican great Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in their WBC super-middleweight title fight in Texas last December – which remains Smith's only defeat in 28 pro fights.
"That's never nice to see... especially when it's you involved in it," the Liverpudlian told The Sportsman afterwards.
Glad to hear Castillo is conscious and talking, it’s a dangerous sport but nobody ever wants to really hurt someone, also well done Callum on a big statement in light heavyweight division
"It's a sport at the end of the day and I always just hope that me and my opponent leave the ring safely.
"I've heard he's responsive so, fingers crossed, everything's OK – but no, it's never nice to see. Obviously I wanted to win but you never want to win that way."
Castillo’s worrying loss on Saturday night was his fourth in 26 professional outings, but fans will simply be hopeful that he makes a speedy recovery from his horror KO.
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