Rolly Romero has revealed the one fighter who has hit him the hardest during his career.
The 29-year-old from Las Vegas, Nevada produced a disciplined performance to defeat the returning Ryan Garcia at the iconic Times Square in New York City on May 2.
Romero floored Garcia in the second round of their bout, which was contested for the WBA Regular welterweight title, before he was declared the winner via unanimous decision in what was a career best performance from the former WBA super-lightweight champion.
He was a significant underdog pre-fight, with stoppage losses to Gervonta Davis and Isaac Cruz still in the memories of fight fans.
Whilst speaking on The Danza Project Podcast, Romero named the hardest puncher he has shared a ring with thus far, overlooking both the lightning fast Garcia and knockout artist ‘Tank’ Davis.
“I end up getting a world title shot at 140 and I’m like ‘Okay, I’m going to become a world champion’, you know, and my opponent changed on like two weeks’ notice to a completely different dude who punches harder than anyone I’ve ever been in the ring with in my life. And to this day I still haven’t been hit that hard, and I still pulled off the victory.”
‘Rolly’s stoppage in the ninth round of their bout at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas to capture the vacant WBA world title at 140lbs was extremely controversial, with many feeling Barroso – who had hurt the American – should have had time to continue.
Romero was dethroned of his WBA crown less than a year later after he was stopped by Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz in the eighth round of their showdown in March 2024. It was the second defeat of his career, having also been stopped by Gervonta Davis back in May 2022.
Romero has bounced back from that defeat to Cruz with two consecutive victories, as he now looks to cement himself as a major player within the welterweight division.
