Romero claims vacant 140 belt vs. Barroso on inexplicable stoppage

Sims edges Akhmedov in action-packed junior welterweight title eliminator; Barthelemy outpoints Juarez to bounce back from loss

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It only figured that an extremely lackluster fight would end with one of the most head-scratching stoppages imaginable.

Rolando “Rolly” Romero got up from a third-round knockdown to score a questionable knockdown in the ninth round and then an even more questionable knockout later in the round against Ismael Barroso thanks to referee Tony Weeks’ shocking intervention on Saturday night in the Showtime-televised Premier Boxing Champions main event at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

Romero, who was trailing on all three scorecards, nonetheless won the vacant WBA junior welterweight title as he moved up to 140 pounds for his first bout since suffering a sixth-round knockout loss challenging Gervonta “Tank” Davis for the WBA “regular” lightweight title last May.