Pablo Cesar Cano is tough and battle tested, but not many people could have predicted what would wind up happening at Madison Square Garden on Friday night.
It was supposed to be a stay busy fight for Jorge Linares who had his sights set on bigger prize fights against the likes of Jose Ramirez and Maurice Hooker.
But Cano didn’t get the memo as he came out guns blazing and steamrolled Linares, dropping the former champion three times in Round 1 and possibly retiring the Venezuelan legend.
Referee Ricky Gonzalez officially jumped in at 2:48 of Round 1 to give Cano the TKO victory.
OVER! Pablo Cesar Cano produces a shock by stopping @JorgeLinares in the first round! pic.twitter.com/bpMy4oXwMp
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) January 19, 2019
“All my career I’ve been wanting a victory of this magnitude against a fighter like Jorge Linares,” said Cano who had lost three of his last five fights.
When the topic of what’s next came up, Cano was asked about potentially facing Hooker.
“Absolutely,” stated Cano excitedly. “We’re Mexican, we’re warriors and we’re here to fight whoever.”
As ringside commentator Sergio Mora repeatedly stated, Cano seemed to be too big and too strong for Linares who never seemed to get his feet under him after the first knockdown.
“He surprised me with the right hand. He has power and a big punch,” said Linares. “His body is bigger and he’s got an amazing punch.”
Linares also spoke about the difference of moving up in weight.
“Five pounds is different,” said Linares. “The weight is hard… I have to decide if I go back to 135 or stay at 140.”
