Lamont Peterson admits the Truth hurts

Saturday night at the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn, NY, IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence, Jr. was back in the squared circle for the first time in eight months.

Last May, Spence traveled overseas to face Kell Brook in one of the more highly anticipated match-ups on the boxing calendar; it was a contest that saw Spence’s arm raised as the victor.

Fast forward to Saturday night’s bout, Spence would be making the first defense of his strap against the very tough Lamont Peterson of Washington D.C. in the main event.

The 28-year-old Spence, Jr. had a successful maiden defense of his title, while improving his ledger to 23-0, (20). For the duration of seven rounds, Spence, Jr. administered a beat down, prompting his foe’s corner to call the fight off prior to the start of the eighth.

“I want to thank Lamont. A lot guys turned down the fight and he took it like a real warrior and I commend him for that,” the native of Dallas, Texas would say. “My coach came with a great game plan and I just followed through with it. Keep my range, keep my composure.”

Spence, Jr. was in total control from start to finish. He dictated the tempo of the bought, properly executing a proportional ratio of head and body punches. Peterson, a former two-time world champion in his own right, had faced a plethora of world class fighters before, however he had never been outclassed the way he was like on the night of the 20th.

And although, Peterson’s record may have dropped to 35-4-1 (17), and is now possibly considering retirement, he earned the respect of the masses by showing courage and valor. Peterson remained true to his DNA. He was a fighter to the bitter end.

“He was getting the shots on me early. He was the better man tonight,” said Peterson, who touched the canvas in the fifth round. “I always respect Barry’s decision. If he asks me to fight a million people, I will. If he asks me to stop. I will stop. I will never question his decision. I know he has my best interests at heart.”

Spence, Jr., a southpaw, kept Peterson on the outside, landing an array of accurate jabs, which was immediately followed by a perfect flow of offense. The onslaught was simply too much for Peterson to deal with. The “W” marks the tenth straight stoppage for Spence, Jr.

“I know Lamont, he’s a tough fighter. He’s willing to die in there. You saw his coach had to stop the fight because he wanted to keep fighting,” said Spence, Jr. “I still can improve a lot on my defense. I just have to keep perfecting my skills and keep progressing. You’re going to see a better Errol Spence next time I get in the ring. I didn’t know I would dominate like that. I expected to get the knockout, but this was a great performance.”