Callum Smith made a strong first impression as a light heavyweight on the Anthony Joshua-Oleksandr Usyk card Saturday in London.
Smith, fighting for the first time since losing his super middleweight title to Canelo Alvarez in December, knocked out former Olympian Lenin Castillo with a single, devastating right hand 55 seconds into Round 2 in the scheduled 10-rounder.
Castillo, knocked unconscious, remained on the canvas until medical personnel removed him on a stretcher.
Smith (28-1, 20 KOs) was fighting for the first time as a full-fledged 175-pounder, a weight at which Castillo (21-4-1, 16 KOs) has fought his entire professional career.
In case you missed Callum Smith's 2nd rd KO of Castillo pic.twitter.com/THyIrQ4RDz
— Relentless Pressure 🇺🇸 (@NecessaryFight) September 25, 2021
However, Smith looked comfortable from the outset, fighting aggressively and with obvious confidence. The bout has been largely uneventful when early in the second round Smith landed a right counter to the head that put his Dominican opponent flat on his back.
It was clear immediately that Castillo was injured badly, as he seemed to have a seizure. Most notably, his legs shook badly.
Paramedics jumped into the ring quickly to treat Castillo and, after a few minutes, he was whisked out of the ring and taken to a hospital. DAZN later reported that he had regained consciousness.
Of course, Castillo’s condition made it impossible for Smith to celebrate his victory in the ring. However, the Liverpudlian had big night. He got back into the win column in dramatic fashion against a capable opponent, which is a significant step in the right direction.
