Diego De La Hoya vs. Rocco Santomauro: Winner, Recap and Reaction
Bantamweight prospect Diego De La Hoya (15-0, nine KOs) destroyed Rocco Santomauro (13-1) in seven rounds Saturday. The fight was part of the undercard for the Canelo Alvarez vs. Amir Khan bout at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
De La Hoya, who is the 21-year-old cousin of boxing legend and founder of Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya, shined in what equated to a showcase bout for him.
After watching Santomauro take a beating for six-plus rounds, referee Jay Nady had seen enough. Aside from a few low blows that wound up costing De La Hoya a point on the scorecard, it was a spotless performance.
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Several members of the boxing community chimed in with praise for De La Hoya. ESPN.com's Dan Rafael and Yahoo Sports' Chris Mannix showed their appreciation:
While Santomauro came into the fight undefeated, the 28-year-old from Hesperia, California, had only one knockout in his career. He was coming off a six-round unanimous-decision victory over Jose Estrella in February.
Three months later against a better opponent, the results were different.
His lack of punching power served as a license for De La Hoya to throw caution to the wind. He was aggressive and determined to put on a memorable performance. Early in his career, he's displayed noteworthy power. Saturday's stoppage win was his second straight victory that ended with a knockout or TKO.
In his last fight, De La Hoya stopped Arturo Badillo in the fourth round on a body shot.
A spot on a Canelo Alvarez undercard was a great opportunity for the young Mexican prospect, and being kin to a great former Mexican champion gave De La Hoya a foot in the door with the loyal demographic.
Being packaged with Canelo only improved his potential position.
Unfortunately, the fight wasn't televised on the pay-per-view broadcast, so most weren't able to see De La Hoya dismantle Santomauro. However, after a strong showing, it seems safe to expect De La Hoya's next fight to take place higher on the next card.
If he continues to look as good as he did Saturday, he won't have to worry about exposure.
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