Once again, the 17-year-old prodigy Curmel Moton was scheduled to fight in the walkout bout at a pay-per-view event, and once again, Moton was victorious as he knocked out Hunter Turbyfill (3-1, 1 KO) in the opening round of their fight that took place Saturday night at the Michelob Ultra Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
(Photo credit: Ryan Hafey/Premier Boxing Champions)
The teenage featherweight boxer has two pro fights under his belt, but he hasn’t experienced what it feels like to fight in the second round. In his bout with Turbyfill, as soon as the bell sounded to officially start the opening round, Moton was able to dictate the pace of the fight from start to finish.
Prior to turning pro, fight fans kept hearing about the potential of a young fighter who was being mentored and praised by Hall of Fame boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. On multiple occasions, Mayweather made statements insisting that his fighter Curmel Moton will be a future superstar of boxing.
Moton is an 18-time national champion who went to the Nevada State Athletic Commission to receive special permission to turn pro. He was extremely successful as an amateur, but he believes he will achieve greatness as a professional because his style of boxing is a pro-style.
Fight fans have been able to follow and see videos of Moton training and doing incredible things during sparring sessions, but the question remained: would all of the things we see in the videos translate once he enters the squared circle as a pro?
We received the answer on the night of September 30th when Moton made his professional boxing debut and stopped Ezequiel Flores in the first round. On November 25th, Curmel Moton was ready to take the second step in his boxing journey as he was set to face the previously undefeated Hunter Turbyfill.
After the WBC Interim super-middleweight champion David Benavidez defeated Demetrius Andrade by way of sixth round stoppage, it was time for 17-year-old Curmel Moton and 28-year-old Hunter Turbyfill to meet inside of the squared circle.
In the opening round of the bout, Moton came out feinting, using the jab, and throwing the right to the body. As the round progressed, Moton continued to press forward, and he scored a knockdown when he landed a hard right-hand shot to his opponent’s body.
Turbyfill was able to get up, but later in the same round, Moton landed another thunderous body shot that sent Turbyfill back down to the canvas. Turbyfill was on his knees, throbbing in pain as the referee counted him out.
Curmel Moton (2-0, 2 KOs), once again, during his brief time in a professional boxing ring, displayed a strong jab, ring generalship, punching power, and good punch placement. He’s still in the beginning stages of his pro boxing career, but it’s quite easy to see that Moton is an example of greatness on the horizon.
Moton is a young boxer who has made a lot of sacrifices during the course of his childhood, but the hard work and sacrifices are starting to pay off. Curmel Moton will briefly celebrate this victory, and then he plans on returning to the ring sometime in January 2024.
