Story And Photos By David Algranati
Keith Colon Stops Jose Velasquez, Extends Knockout Streak to 12 at Brick City Fight Night Rd. 7
Keith “Tsunami” Colon remained perfect as a professional, scoring a second-round technical knockout over former world title challenger Jose Velasquez in the main event of Rising Star Promotions’ “Brick City Fight Night Rd. 7” on Saturday night at the Robert Treat Hotel in Newark, New Jersey.
Fighting in his hometown, Colon entered the contest with an 11-0 record, with every victory coming by knockout. The featherweight bout represented several firsts for the Newark native, including his first scheduled ten-round contest and his toughest opponent to date.
Velasquez, a 13-year professional from Chile, brought considerable experience into the matchup. The former world title challenger had faced some of the sport’s best, most recently going the distance with two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time world champion Guillermo Rigondeaux.
From the opening bell, Velasquez showed he was willing to exchange with the hard-punching Colon, providing exactly the kind of action the hometown crowd wanted to see. Colon connected with several heavy power shots in the opening round, and his punching power ultimately proved too much for the durable Chilean.
In the second, Colon dropped Velasquez twice. Despite beating the count and continuing to fight, Velasquez was unable to withstand another unanswered combination. Referee Ricky Vera stepped in to halt the contest at 2:33 of the round, awarding Colon the victory by technical knockout.
With the stoppage, Colon became just the second fighter to stop Velasquez in his 52-bout professional career. Colon improves to 12-0, with all 12 victories coming by knockout. Velasquez falls to 34-15-3 (24 KOs).
The ten-round co-main event saw Phoenix, Arizona’s Danny “Carita” Barrios-Flores earn a unanimous decision over Eduardo “Koreano” Ramirez in a super bantamweight contest.
Making his first appearance of 2026, Barrios-Flores used his hand speed, footwork and accuracy to overcome the height and reach advantages of the Sonora, Mexico native. The southpaw consistently came forward and outworked Ramirez, who remained competitive and durable throughout the contest despite being unable to match Barrios-Flores’ output.
There were no knockdowns. All three judges scored the bout 100-90 for Barrios-Flores, who earned his second professional victory in a scheduled ten-round contest.
Barrios-Flores improves to 18-1 (6 KOs), while Ramirez drops to 23-6-3 (17 KOs).
In an eight-round welterweight matchup, Gabe “El Gran” Gerena earned a majority decision over Rani Jalomo in a contest between once-beaten fighters. The bout had previously been postponed earlier this year.
Jalomo used his height and reach advantages in the early rounds, while Gerena concentrated on attacking the body. As the contest progressed, the fighters increasingly engaged at close quarters, where Gerena’s shorter punches and higher work rate began to make the difference.
Gerena’s body attack was particularly effective in the middle and later rounds. With no knockdowns, the bout went to the scorecards, where one judge scored it 76-76, overruled by scores of 77-75 on the other two cards. Gerena was awarded the majority decision.
Gerena extends his winning streak to four and improves to 10-1 (7 KOs). Jalomo falls to 7-2-1 (4 KOs).
Undefeated light heavyweight Arjan Iseni suffered his first professional defeat, dropping a majority decision to Everlon Still in a competitive six-round contest.
Still, who entered the bout riding a six-fight unbeaten streak, used his reach and straight punches effectively in the opening two rounds. Iseni found his range in the third and fourth, closing the distance and landing quality shots.
The fifth round provided the fight’s most dramatic moments. Still connected with a series of power punches that nearly sent Iseni through the ropes and out of the ring. Iseni responded in the sixth, appearing to outwork Still in a competitive final round.
There were no knockdowns. One judge scored the bout 57-57, while the other two favored Still by scores of 58-56 and 59-55, giving him the majority decision.
Still improves to 7-2-1 (3 KOs), while Iseni falls to 6-1 (5 KOs).
Giovanni “The Ghost” Figueroa returned to the win column with a unanimous decision over Luis Almandarez in a six-round featherweight contest.
Coming off a competitive decision loss in March, Figueroa faced his most accomplished opponent as a professional in Almandarez, who entered with eight victories. The two fighters put on an entertaining contest, combining technical skill with a willingness to exchange.
Figueroa was the more active and accurate puncher throughout, although Almandarez landed enough power shots to keep him engaged and prevent him from becoming overly aggressive. Figueroa maintained his advantage through six rounds, with all three judges scoring the bout 60-54 in his favor.
Figueroa improves to 7-1-1 (5 KOs), while Almandarez falls to 8-7 (3 KOs).
Three fighters made successful professional debuts on the undercard, beginning with Deer Park, Long Island’s Jacob “The Executioner” Spence.
Spence faced Houston’s Katevrick London in a four-round super middleweight contest and controlled the action from the opening bell. London’s unconventional offense did little to disrupt Spence, who put him down with a combination after backing him toward a neutral corner.
London beat the count, but Spence continued his attack. A left hand to the body immobilized London, and as he descended toward the canvas, a right hand from Spence followed. Referee Herm Ingram immediately stepped in to stop the contest at 1:18 of the first round.
Spence begins his professional career with a knockout victory, improving to 1-0 (1 KO). London falls to 0-2.
Robert Reid, Jr. of Brooklyn also made his professional debut, earning a unanimous decision over Gregory “Bronx Kid” Lee in a four-round featherweight matchup.
The two southpaws spent much of the opening round fighting at distance, but Reid began closing the gap in the second, working effectively to the body. Lee increased his aggression late in the second and continued pressing in the third, but Reid proved to be the more accurate and effective puncher in the final round.
With no knockdowns, the bout went to the scorecards. All three judges favored Reid, with scores of 40-36, 40-36 and 39-37.
Reid makes his professional debut a successful one, improving to 1-0. Lee falls to 0-4-1.
Paterson, New Jersey’s 20-year-old Ezekiel Suarez also made an impressive professional debut, stopping Jesus Castro in a four-round featherweight contest.
Suarez connected with an overhand right in the opening round before following up with two consecutive right hands that sent Castro to the canvas. Castro beat the count and continued, but Suarez maintained his attack, landing power shots throughout the second and third rounds.
Despite Castro’s determination to remain on his feet, referee Ricky Vera had seen enough and stopped the contest at 1:09 of the third round, awarding Suarez the technical knockout victory.
Suarez improves to 1-0 (1 KO), while Castro falls to 1-5 (1 KO).
Jordon “Hercules” Simpson continued his unbeaten start to his professional career with a devastating first-round knockout of Ronald Binyard in a four-round super welterweight bout.
Both fighters entered the contest coming off knockout victories, but Simpson wasted little time establishing himself. He came out throwing power shots and repeatedly backed Binyard toward the ropes.
A crushing right hand sent Binyard face-first to the canvas, prompting referee Herb Ingram to immediately stop the contest at just 34 seconds of the opening round.
Simpson improves to 2-0, with both victories coming by knockout. Binyard falls to 1-2-1 (1 KO).
Rising Star Promotions’ “Brick City Fight Night Rd. 7” featured nine bouts at the Robert Treat Hotel in Newark. The event streamed live on the promotion’s YouTube channel and is available for on-demand replay.
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