David Morrell Jr. beats Sena Agbeko in second-round TKO at Armory

David Morrell Jr. defended a WBA super middleweight title in his usual sudden fashion on Saturday night at the Minneapolis Armory.

Morrell went to 10-0 for his pro career by stopping Sena Agbeko (28-3) on a TKO at 1:43 of the second round.

The largest crowd announced for a boxing card at the remodeled Armory — 5,347 — came to cheer Morrell. He had his first pro fight and several title defenses at the Armory after early training in Minneapolis and still calls this his boxing home.

"Thank you to my fans for coming to the fight," Morrell said. "Teaching everyone who is the No. 1."

Morrell was fighting in front of his parents — Rafael Sr. and Betty — for the first time as a pro. They were allowed to emigrate to the U.S. from Cuba and made it to Florida on Nov. 2.

"I'm so excited," Morrell said. "The first time my dad and my mom came to watch me fight, so I'm really excited to have them here. … It's my night. It's my time. It's my year, and I'm looking forward to a good 2024."

Agbeko got through the first round as Morrell looked for an opening. Morrell is a lefty and by the time opponents adjust to that idea, the fight often is near a conclusion.

Morrell maneuvered Agbeko into the corner ropes midway in the second round, then delivered a combination of punches that caused Agbeko to sag, and that was it. Referee Mark Nelson deemed Agbeko defenseless and stopped it.

This quick win on the last-ever live Showtime boxing telecast sets up Morrell for a big-money title fight in a few months — potentially vs. David Benavidez in Las Vegas.

"In 2024, I want to fight Benavidez," Morrell said. "One hundred percent."

Jose Valenzuela dominated the co-main event in a scheduled 12-rounder with Chris Colbert advertised as a lightweight eliminator.

Valenzuela swarmed Colbert immediately in the first round, carried the fight and knocked out Colbert with a right hook midway in the sixth round.

The referee ended the fight as Colbert crumpled. It reversed a controversial decision for Colbert over Valenzuela in March.

Showtime filled out the three-bout television portion of its last card with a rematch of a pair of 40-year-lightweights: Robert Guerrero and Andre Berto. They had a true brawl won by Guerrero way back in 2012 and both went on to excellent careers.

Before Saturday, Guerrero had not fought since 2021 and Berto since 2018. Guerrero won a lopsided unanimous decision in a low-action bout.

Other fights of interest from the Armory included:

* Kyrone Davis won a unanimous eight-round decision over middleweight Cruse Stewart from Maple Grove.

* Alberto Puello, a former titleholder, won a unanimous super lightweight eight-round decision over Ector Madera.

* Charles Harris stopped Marlin Sims from Minneapolis in the sixth round of a lightweight bout.