Santa Cruz vs Martinez results: Hugo Ruiz delivers on promise, stops Julio Ceja in first round

Hugo Ruiz said he was going to knock out Julio Ceja in the first round, and tonight at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Ruiz won the WBC super bantamweight title via first round stoppage in just 51 seconds, gaining not just the belt but a measure of revenge after losing to Ceja last August.

This fight wasn't the all-out battle that one was, but it's hard to argue with getting a first round knockout. Ruiz (36-3, 32 KO) dropped Ceja on the first punch he landed, a monstrous right hand that not only put the defending titleholder on the canvas, but also appeared to injure his right ankle on the fall, as Ceja's upper body went down faster than his legs responded.

Ceja (30-2, 27 KO) got up and attempted to continue on, but the ankle injury was clearly bothering him, and Ruiz, a good finisher, wasn't giving him any chance to escape, something he felt he did when he floored Ceja in their first fight. Ruiz went on the attack, throwing with both hands, and the hobbled Ceja couldn't escape the pressure. Referee Thomas Taylor stepped in to stop the fight just 51 seconds after it had began.

Ceja was taken out by stretcher, likely just a precaution to avoid the risk of exacerbating the injury by walking on it. The ringside doctor said that Ceja suffered at least a dislocated ankle, possibly a fracture.

Hugo Ruiz becomes the new WBC Super Bantamweight World champ over @cesar_ped via 1st RD KO. #SantaCruzMartinez https://t.co/2NIG4zXpuC

— SHOWTIME SPORTS (@SHOsports) February 28, 2016