Demetrius Andrade (22-0, 15 KOs) stopped Argentinian Dario Fabian Pucheta (20-3) at the 50-second mark of the second round Saturday night at Mohegan Sun Arena to capture the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) International Junior Middleweight Title in the main event.
Fighting for the first time in 16 months, Andrade – the former world title-holder in the WBO – made quick work of Pucheta, sending him to the canvas twice in the opening round, the first time courtesy of a straight left hand and again just seconds later with a right uppercut. Already on wobbly legs, Pucheta gave it a go in the second round, but Andrade laid him out flat with another right, sending the pro-Andrade crowd into an uproar.
Andrade will now vault back into the WBO rankings, where he says he’s ready for the “big boys” at 154 pounds, whether that’s World Boxing Association (WBA) junior middleweight champion Erislandy Lara, WBC middleweight champ Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, or anybody else in that weight class.
“Everybody else can get the big fights. Why can’t I get the big fights?” Andrade said. “Lara calls out Delvin Rodriguez, and he gets that fight, but I can’t get Lara. He can go in and barge in on Canelo’s press conference and get that fight. Why can’t I get the same thing? I called him a bitch, nationally!
“No disrespect to any fighter because anyone who gets in that ring, I have high respect for, but it’s time for me to showcase what I really have against the guys everyone thinks is No. 1.”
Showing no signs of ring rust, Andrade came out firing Saturday and could get his shot real soon.
“This layoff, I just took the time to get better physically, spiritually, mentally, just all around, to be better myself,” he said. “Once I found out I was fighting September 17th, I always keep the synthetic oil in, but I had to get the motors running again. Here we go, man.”
