Lamont Roach wanted to put on a show for his hometown fans in his first title defense, and that’s exactly what he did. Roach made the first defense of his WBA junior lightweight title on Friday in dominant fashion, stopping tough Irish contender Feargal McCrory in eight rounds at the Entertainment and Sports Arena in Washington D.C.
The bout came to a halt at the 2:51 mark, as McCrory’s head trainer Colin Morgan threw in the towel. “I just want to be the baddest motherf—ker on the planet, man,” said an emotional Roach to the ProBox TV commentators after fighting for the first time in his home region since 2017. “I don’t even know how to explain it right now.
It just feels the best, I know that I reaped all the benefits of my hard work. I’m not just talking just to talk, like I told you guys for weeks. I’ve been training my ass off to put on a spectacular performance for the beautiful people of my town.
” The fight was the first for Roach (24-1-1, 9 knockouts) since winning the title in November with a split decision win over Hector Luis Garcia, while McCrory (16-1, 8 KOs) was getting his first opportunity at a world title. From the outset, Roach, 28, of nearby Upper Marlboro, Md., was a level above his opponent, landing big punches on the tough McCrory, most notably with the left hook against the southpaw from Coalisland, Northern Ireland.
Roach scored the first knockdown of the fight in the third round, putting him down with a counter check hook. Roach tur.
