The stakes were significantly reduced less than 72 hours before Williams entered the ring, but he still treated the night as if a world title shot was at stake.
An entertaining scrap with late replacement Ivan Vazquez, 11-1-2 (8 KOs), saw Williams earn a ninth-round knockout. A laser-accurate right hand down the middle followed by a left sent Vazquez to the canvas, with the bout subsequently stopped at 36 seconds of the ninth round.
Williams, 19-1 (13 KOs) – a Milwaukee-born, Houston-based contender – entered fight week planning to face Italy’s Etinosa Oliha in an IBF middleweight title eliminator. The bout was scrapped on Wednesday when it was learned that Oliha suffered a ruptured vein in his eye, forcing him off the show.
Houston’s Vazquez was training for a six-round bout when he got the call to step in on very short notice. He was able to enjoy success with counter right hands, while Williams’ planned body attack was thwarted by a point deduction for a low blow in the third after he was warned for the same in the second.
Williams continued to take the lead, though, and consistently outworked Vazquez.
A momentum shift in the eighth saw Vazquez switch gears and take the lead during an exchange on the inside. Williams briefly appeared to slow, but he came roaring back in the final 30 seconds, during which time Vazquez failed to throw anything in return.
Williams didn’t waste any time to end matters. He came out firing at the start of the ninth and drove Vazquez to the ropes. He measured up his familiar foe – a former sparring – and slammed home the final two-punch combination to end the fight.
Previously, Omari Jones, 3-0 (3 KOs), was extended his deepest as a pro – though just barely, as he still made quick work of Argentina’s Alfredo Rodolfo Blanco, 24-15 (11 KOs). Two knockdowns paved the way to a stoppage victory at 2 minutes, 35 seconds of Round 3 in their junior middleweight contest.
Jones – a 2024 Olympic bronze medalist for the US – turned pro on March 15 with a second-round knockout. The night ended early enough for him to come back just four weeks later on the April 11 Jaron “Boots” Ennis-Eimantas Stanionis undercard.
With the benefit of a three-month break, Jones looked refreshed and crisper than ever as he faced yet another vastly more experienced pro opponent.
Blanco was awkward but didn’t really offer much more than that. Jones quickly solved the riddle and sent the visiting journeyman to the canvas late in the second. He was already at his deepest point as a pro – Jones’ pro debut lasted only 22 seconds into Round 2, followed by a first-round knockout – but he was ready to take as long as necessary to close the show.
It required only one more round.
Jones connected with two right hands upstairs before landing a left hook to the body that folded Blanco. Referee Hector Afu issued a mandatory count but waved it off, as it was clear that Blanco – still on the canvas – was not in any condition to continue.
