Gary Russell Jr. picked up the first world title of his career, capturing the WBC featherweight title after defeating former champion Jhonny Gonzalez via 3rd round TKO. Russell Jr. came out firing his fast hands, but Gonzalez remained calm as he looked to close the distance. The action started to heat up in the third round as Russell Jr. began sitting down on his punches, trading with Gonzalez at times while controlling the fight from the outside.
As Gonzalez tried to apply pressure, Russell Jr. landed a hard left hand followed by a solid right hook that dropped Gonzalez for the first time in the fight. Russell Jr. jumped on him to start the fourth round, landing a series of punches that sent Gonzalez to the canvas again. Although he beat the count, Gonzalez was dropped again by a flurry of punches from Russell Jr., and the referee called a halt to the assault at 37 seconds of round 4.
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