Raymond Ford scores dramatic come-from-behind TKO to win WBA featherweight belt
Photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank
New Jersey has its second current world champion.
Raymond Ford scored a dramatic come-from-behind technical knockout of Otabek Kholmatov with just seven seconds remaining in the twelfth round to win the vacant WBA featherweight title on Saturday night at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, N.Y.
Ford, 24, of Camden, N.J. trailed by scores of 106-103 on two cards and was ahead on one card by the score of 105-104. Had the fight gone to the final bell, Ford would have lost a split decision.
Ford (15-0-1, 8 knockouts) was his own judge, jury and executioner, hurting the Uzbek fighter Kholmatov (12-1, 11 KOs) with a right hook with 30 seconds left in the fight, and followed it with a combination of punches. Kholmatov fell to the floor but it wasn’t ruled a knockdown.
The eight-count would have benefited him, as Ford immediately jumped on him, sending him flying across the ring with a right hand that left him defenseless, forcing referee Charlie Fitch to stop the fight.
“My coach told me to bring that dog out. We knew we were coming into their territory. This wasn’t under our promotion. But we had to dig deep. The whole time in the corner, I kept telling myself, ‘I’m going to stop him.’ I felt him breaking down as the rounds went on,” said Ford, who is promoted by Matchroom Boxing.
“I started off a little slow. I felt I didn’t really have the energy and the legs to be the sharper boxer I know I can be. That was due to a tough weight cut. So, this may be my last fight at 126. Then, we’ll go up to 130 and call out the champions there.
“I knew I had to stop him. The rounds were too close. I just had to bring that dog out that my coaches were talking about. I always knew I had it in me. I come from a rough background. There’s nothing that can stop me. Ever.”
Ford, a 2018 National Golden Gloves champion, joins WBC lightweight titleholder Shakur Stevenson as the only two current champions from New Jersey. He trains out of TKO Fitness in Cherry Hill, N.J.