Dave Allen Stops Karim Berredjem in 57 Seconds

Overhand right and body shot spark immediate stoppage

Dave Allen stops Karim Berredjem 57 seconds into the first round, finishing the heavyweight fight before it could settle. A heavy overhand right scrambled Berredjem’s legs and the follow-up along the ropes brought the referee in.

Allen came off the stool looking to set the pace. He edged forward behind a subtle shoulder feint and whipped the right hand over Berredjem’s lead. It landed clean on the temple and immediately froze him. Berredjem gave ground with his guard high and his feet too close together.

Allen kept his spacing. He set his base, dug a left hook to the body under the elbow, and came back upstairs with straight right hands. Berredjem tried to shell up, though he was not firing back and could not pivot off the ropes. Allen kept his feet set and punched in short, compact combinations, forcing Berredjem to absorb without answer.

With Berredjem offering no return and his balance gone, the referee stepped in at 0:57 of the opening round.

The win moves Allen to 25-8-2 with 20 knockouts and stands as the quickest stoppage of his career. After the loss to Arslanbek Makhmudov, he needed to reestablish himself with authority. He did it by starting with the feint, sitting down on the right hand, and finishing once he had his man hurt.

Allen has always been most effective when he imposes himself early, walks opponents onto shots, and lets his hands go once he senses vulnerability. When he gets his feet underneath him and throws the overhand right with force, it can change a fight in one exchange.

Berredjem falls to 12-11. He never had the chance to set range or test Allen’s conditioning. At this level, if you give Allen space to load up, the night can end inside a minute.