ShoBox Photo Gallery: Dirrell, Romero Score Wins in California

On last night's ShoBox at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California, Anthony Dirrell stopped Renan St-Juste in four rounds due to a shoulder injury, and Colombian super bantamweight Jhonatan Romero scored a surprising split decision victory over series veteran Chris Avalos.

Before we get to the photo gallery, a few further thoughts on each fighter. We'll limit it to three apiece.

[ Related: ShoBox Post-Fight Recap ]

Anthony Dirrell

1. Yes, I really like him better than I do Andre. It's not that I think Anthony is some future superstar so much as I'm convinced Andre will let down his biggest believers. Obviously I'm not part of that group. If I'm wrong, so be it. But Anthony just has a lot more fight in him, it seems to me.
2. Part of the reason I like Anthony Dirrell is he looks like a crazy dude. He doesn't fight like one, but he just has a constant look in his eyes like he's about to mess someone up.
3. He's got talent, but there are big steps to take between this and the Ward vs Froch winner or Lucian Bute. That should be calmed down in a hurry.

Renan St-Juste

1. He's 39 years old.
2. I don't really know what more I can say.
3. I shouldn't have promised this for each man.

Jhonatan Romero

1. Despite the win, which was perfectly well-earned, it's not like we saw some blue chipper out of Colombia.
2. While his right hand was pretty decent, his left is very slappy at times. It's strange when a fighter has that much fundamental difference between each hand.
3. He beat Avalos with his pick-and-peck, potshot style last night, but he won't beat top fighters.

Chris Avalos

1. Avalos always makes for a decent fight, but this is really as far as he's getting. He's a ShoBox/Friday Night Fights guy. He fights hard, but he's so limited.
2. He's also never going to change. Avalos is a hard-wired fighter.
3. I think one of his biggest problems is he often fights with such overconfidence that he can be almost indifferent. Yeah, he charges hard, but he throws plenty of shots that seem to be without real purpose.

All photos by Tom Casino/Showtime