Regis Prograis Demolishes Joel Diaz Jr. in ShoBox Main Event

Regis Prograis made an emphatic statement Friday night in the main event of a ShoBox: The New Generation inside Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, N.Y.

Prograis remained undefeated in the pro ranks by scoring a destructive second-round knockout of Joel Diaz Jr., proving he is the superior of the two promising contenders. Prograis (20-0, 17 KOs) rocked Diaz almost as soon as the second round began and knocked him off his feet roughly 30 seconds into their duel. Though the knockdown appeared to be more flash and flush, Prograis dropped him moments later with a straight left.

The Houston resident was like a shark smelling blood and went for the kill and dropped Diaz about 15 seconds later. Diaz (23-1, 19 KOs) again climbed back to his feet but a powerful left hook finished him off. Referee Mark Nelson had finally seen enough and waived off the mugging as soon as Diaz hit the deck for the fourth time in the round, ending the slaughter at the 2:55 mark.

“Tonight, I proved I graduated from ShoBox,” Prograis said after the fight. “I’m ready for the bigger stage. I’m ready for the big show. I want to fight best the best in the division. I want (Terrance) Crawford, (Victor) Postol, (Adrien) Broner. I want them all. None of these guys have fought anybody like me. The boogeyman is coming. They better get ready.”

Super middleweight prospect Steve Rolls (16-0, 9 KOs) edged Demond Nicholson (17-2-1, 16 KOs) via split decision, winning via tallies of 75-77 and 77-74 (twice) in the co-feature.

Jon Fernandez (13-0, 11 KOs) brutally knocked out Juan Reyes (14-4-3, 2 KOs) in the second round. The lightweight prospect levelled Reyes with a missile of a right behind the ear, knocking him out cold and dropping him flat on his back. The end came at 2:36 of the stanza, kicking off the Showtime-televised card in grand style.