It’s going to be lost in the sauce of what happened in the main event last night, but Edgar “The Chosen One” Berlanga was one and done again to kick off the ESPN broadcast Saturday night from “The Bubble.”
Berlanga knocked out Lanell Bellows in just 79 seconds, the 15th first-round knockout to begin his career.
Bellows (20-6-3, 13 KOs) had never been knocked out in an eight-year pro career. After the knockout, Berlanga climbed to a neutral corner and proclaimed to the Bubble audience, “I’m a fuc*ing monster!”
What was apparent on the broadcast was that Bellow’s body language taking off his ring walk gear looked like he didn’t want to be there. Berlanga saw this and stated as much after the fight.
“I saw with the first shot that I cut him open and the look in his eyes, he didn’t want to be in there,” Berlanga said, talking after the fight. From the beginning, once I got in the ring, I looked in his eyes… he didn’t want to be in there. So I had to get him out.”
“Now, I’m the first person to stop him, and {I did it} in the first round. So, you know, it just off emotion, off how I really felt. For all the critics out there, all the media, I just felt it in me that I had to say that.”
I don’t think anyone fought Bellows would beat Berlanga, who was on some books heading into Saturday a 30 to 1 favorite but the major prop bet beforehand was that this would be the 1st opponent to take him past the round. That over/under bet was set at 1.5 rounds. At 79 seconds, Berlnaga ended any of that being a possibility.
After the fight, we found out that after this quick work, Berlanga would be back in action by the end of the year.
“We’re looking to fight in December. I just spoke to Bob {Arum} right now. He’s looking to put me on in December. I’m actually looking forward to fighting in Puerto Rico and then also in June on Puerto Rican {Parade} weekend {at Madison Square Garden, so God willing, everything goes right, we can make it happen,” Berlanga stated.
Berlanga is going to be a problem at 168, it’s just a matter if we’ll see him go past the 1st round as that streak continues.