Jeison Rosario scores massive upset with TKO of Julian Williams

Jeison Rosario wasn’t supposed to win against the incoming junior middleweight champion Julian Williams, but he pulled an early 2020 upset.

Julian Williams was the IBF, IBO, and WBA junior middleweight champion headed into his first title defense against lightly regarded Jeison Rosario. Unfortunately, he didn’t leave the
Liacouras Center in Philadelphia with any of the belts.

About eight months ago, Williams stood toe to toe with Jarrett Hurd and out-punched him to gain the lion’s share of the junior middleweight titles. Most thought that he would continue his winning ways against Rosario, but his suspect chin proved to be the difference in the fight.

Rosario was rated as the 36th junior middleweight in the world by Boxrec.com. He was a 9-1 underdog, but he proved that he’s more than a contender. It will be interesting to see what his new rating is after his performance against Williams.

Most of round 1 took place at center ring. Williams and Rosario exchanged jabs, but Williams displayed the faster hands. Rosario left his guard down on several occasions, and Williams scored with the right cross to win the round.

Williams mixed in his right to Rosario’s body early in round 2. Rosario looked frustrated and threw numerous illegal blows while in the clinch. Williams stayed calm and scored consistently throughout the round.

A cut opened up on Williams’ left eye, and Rosario’s confidence grew upon seeing the blood over the last minute of the round. It was a Williams’ round on the cards, but a big boost for Rosario.

Rosario loaded up on his punches early in round 3 but found nothing but air. Regardless, he had Williams moving back for the first time of night. Rosario started to target Williams’ body and controlled the majority of the round.

Williams went back to basics in the fourth and re-established his jab. Rosario returned fire with jabs but threw wild hooks that Williams avoided and countered. It was a close round, but it belonged to Williams.

Rosario was backed up against the ropes early in round 5. Williams had early success, but the momentum quickly shifted. Rosario caught Williams with a left hook the instantly wobbled Williams.

Rosario pounced and hit Williams with everything he threw. Williams tried to clinch and slipped to the canvas. He got to his feet, but Rosario landed a right uppercut on Williams’ chin that made his eyes begin to roll backward. He stayed on his feet, but the referee wisely stopped the fight.

Williams, who looked so ferocious against Hurd in his last outing, failed for the second time of his career. He was knocked out for the second time in round 5 in front of his hometown Philadelphia crowd.

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Rosario deserves a ton of credit. He pulled the upset against daunting odds. However, Williams’ proved that his chin and ability to recover are his biggest weaknesses. He’s a great boxer, but he doesn’t absorb clean punches to the head well.

After the fight, Rosario displayed his confidence, which might be what aided him the most in this bout.

“I came prepared, so I knew before the fight that I was going to win it,” said Rosario through an interpreter.

Williams was classy in defeat and had respectful words for Rosario.

“It [the cut] blurred my vision, but that wasn’t the reason why [I lost],” said Williams. “He was the better fighter tonight.”

There’s a new junior middleweight world champion, and his name is Jeison Rosario. Look for Rosario vs. Williams 2 to take place soon.