Juan Carrillo Dominating In Unanimous Decision Victory For IBF Light Heavyweight Latino World Title Belt Over Lenin Castillo In the Co-Feature

Photos HERE (Please credit Jesús Muriel)

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – October 18, 2024 – Michigan’s Joshua Pagan outdueled cagey veteran Haskell Rhodes in the “Fight of the Night” and main event of Salita Promotions’ “Big Time Boxing Puerto Rico” event on Friday with a unanimous decision victory from the Coca-Cola Music Hall and on DAZN.

Nicknamed “Double J”,  Pagan, whose father grew up in Puerto Rico and later moved to the United States settling in Grand Rapids where Pagan was born, had a legion of boisterous fans in his corner all night as he moved his record to 11-0 (4 KOs) in the 10-round lightweight victory over Rhodes (31-7, 16 KOs). In a fight closer than the judges’ scorecards indicated, Pagan’s hand was raised in victory by the referee with the scores of 100-90 and 99-91 twice. 

“It was amazing tonight, and the entire crowd was filled with just so much energy,” Pagan said. “I wanted to get the knockout, but he was just so experienced. I give him a lot of credit.”

The all-action fight saw an amazing fifth round with exchanges by both fighters that had fans rise to their feet and show their appreciation to both boxers.

The co-feature saw Juan Carrillo (13-0, 9 KOs) from Barranquilla, Colombia, win the IBF Light Heavyweight Latino title as he scored a decisive unanimous decision over Lenin Castillo (25-6-1, 19 KOs) of Santo Domingo, D.R. The judges scored the fight 98-92, 99-91, 100-90. Two judges gave Castillo the eighth round while the third had Carrillo winning the back-and-forth round and pitching a shutout.

In the second television bout, local San Juan favorite Kiria Tapia (5-0, 0 KOs) won for the fifth time against no defeats as she recorded a dominating six-round unanimous decision over Beata Dudek (4-5, 4 KOs) in a fight that saw flashes of the great Puerto Rican champion Amanda Serrano. The trio of judges were all in agreement with their scorecards giving it to Tapia 60-53. Tapia, who knocked Dudek to the canvas in the first round, threw her wide left at will in dominating the outclassed Hungarian.

Opening the highly anticipated DAZN main card, “Motor City” Detroit’s Da’Velle Smith (10-0, 8 KOs) scored a first-round technical knockout over Gilberto Santos (16-16, 12 KOs) from Brazil. It was never a contest as Smith came out the aggressor and knocked Smith to the ground twice before the referee had seen enough following a blistering overhand right and called the bout at 2:28 of the first round.

See below for more on the DAZN fights and what the fighters had to say:

LIGHTWEIGHT MAIN EVENT – 10 ROUNDS

Joshua Pagan (11-0, 4 KOs) over Haskell Rhodes (31-7-1, 16 KOs) via unanimous decision

Scorecards: 99-91 twice and 100-90

“I wish I would’ve had a couple more rounds,” Rhodes said in defeat. “It was a good fight. My hat’s off to Joshua. He fought a clean, smart fight. I love boxing and getting up every day and going to the gym. So I can’t wait to see what’s next for me.”

IBF LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT LATINO WORLD TITLE CO-FEATURE – 10 ROUNDS

Juan Carrillo (13-0, 9 KOs) defeated Lenin Castillo (25-6-1, 19 KOs) via unanimous decision

Scorecards: 98-92, 99-91, 100-90

“I was looking for the knockout and tried to get him out of there, but he was a tough opponent,” Carrillo said. “Hopefully, what’s next for me is an opponent with a big name.” 

WOMEN’S SUPER FEATHERWEIGHT MAIN CARD BOUT – 6 ROUNDS 

Kiria Tapia (5-0, 0 KOs) sixth-round unanimous decision over Beata Dudek (4-5, 4 KOs)

 Scorecards: 60-53, 60-53, 60-53

“I was happy to have all the support of my family and fans in attendance,” Tapia said. “I want to keep improving and progressing and my team and I are confident it could lead to a world title shot someday. The early knockdown set the tone for what I was able to do for the rest of the fight.”

SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT MAIN CARD BOUT – 6 ROUNDS

Da’Velle Smith (10-0, 8 KOs) stopped Gilberto Santos (16-16, 12 KOs) via first-round TKO (2:28).

“I felt amazing, and it was fun out there,” Smith said “It didn’t last long but I don’t get paid extra for overtime. I was able to show the fans in Puerto Rico and around the world just a bit of what I can bring. He came in overweight, but we didn’t complain. We just show up and win.”

In preliminary action, all four winners came from the island of Puerto Rico and from the “A” side. They included: Allen Morales from San Juan (KO at 1:38 of round two), Jorge Vizcarrando from Trujillo Alto (TKO at :15 of round four), Karla Davila (six-round unanimous decision) and Antonio Mota from Toa Baja (four-round majority decision). 

“Big Time Boxing Puerto Rico” was promoted by Salita Promotions in collaboration with PR Best Boxing Promotions (PRBBP) and 21 Events and is part of Salita Promotions’ “Big Time Boxing USA” series, the leading developmental series for promising prospects and young contenders on their journey toward a world championship.

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ABOUT SALITA PROMOTIONS

Salita Promotions was founded in 2010 by Dmitriy Salita, a professional boxer and world-title challenger who saw the need for a promotional entity to feature boxing’s best young prospects and established contenders in North America and around the world. Viewers watching fighters on worldwide television networks including SHOWTIME, HBO, ESPN, Spike TV, Universal Sports Network, UFC Fight Pass, DAZN, ESPN+ and MSG have enjoyed Salita Promotions fight action in recent years. We pride ourselves on offering our fighters opportunities inside and outside the ring. Salita Promotions looks forward to continuing to grow and serve the needs of fight fans around the globe.

Check the Salita Promotions YOUTUBE CHANNEL for regular updates of the modern world’s greatest fighters, contenders and prospects in action. 

ABOUT DAZN

DAZN is the home of European football, women’s football, boxing and MMA, and the NFL (excl. USA). DAZN is building the ultimate sports entertainment platform, based on premium sports rights, world-leading tech, and multi-platform distribution. DAZN believes that fans from across the globe should be able to watch, read, bet, play, share, socialise, buy tickets and merchandise, all in one place, with one account, one wallet and on one app.  For more information on DAZN, its products, people, and performance, visit dazngroup.com.