Lightweight contender Raymond Muratalla aims for a title shot following his recent victory on Saturday night at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. Muratalla, a 27-year-old from Fontana, California, secured a 10-round unanimous decision over former junior lightweight titleholder Tevin Farmer.
After the fight, Muratalla, often overlooked among the top lightweights, was clear about his ambitions. With his trainer Robert Garcia and co-trainer father Gabriel Muratalla Sr. by his side, he stated, "I want the champions next." He has set his sights on Denys Berinchyk, the WBO lightweight champion from Ukraine who recently upset Emanuel Navarrete to win the title.
"Berinchyk called my name," Muratalla said. "I’m calling out his name right now."
Watch Muratalla's post-fight interview here: Watch
Muratalla also expressed interest in facing WBC lightweight titleholder Shakur Stevenson, who is currently a free agent after his Top Rank contract expired.
"If I can’t get Berinchyk, then I want Shakur."
Against Farmer, Muratalla had to be strategic. According to CompuBox, Muratalla landed 106 out of 481 punches, while Farmer landed 109 out of 446. The turning point came in the later rounds, with Muratalla applying consistent pressure and capitalizing on a point deduction for Farmer’s excessive holding.
"I just had to keep applying the pressure. He was moving around. He was holding. So I had to keep putting on the pressure, and we came out with the victory. I was just consistent with the pressure. I just kept putting it on. My team told me to keep putting it on. I was breaking him down round by round."
Image Credit: Sky Sports