Baranchyk bounces back, stops Bracero
“The Beast” wasted no time in getting back to work in his return this evening.
Ivan Baranchyk made a successful return from the first loss of his pro career, returning tonight at Madison Square Garden to stop veteran Gabriel Bracero in the fourth round, when Bracero’s corner saw enough following a knockdown.
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Baranchyk (20-1, 13 KO), known as “The Beast,” lost the IBF junior welterweight title in May against Josh Taylor, but showed no signs of that defeat hanging around for him mentally, coming out and immediately throwing bombs at the 38-year-old veteran Bracero, who had never been stopped before.
The 26-year-old Baranchyk, a Belarusian now based in Miami, Oklahoma, was wild and aggressive in this fight, which he usually is. He was looking to do damage with every punch he threw, and while Bracero (25-4-1, 6 KO) had the craft to avoid most of it, there was just no avoiding all of the lunges from the former titleholder.
Baranchyk dropped Bracero in the fourth round, and Bracero’s corner called the fight there, even though “Tito” got up. It was Bracero’s first fight in 15 months, and he was game and willing to get chippy and dirty in there, but he just couldn’t hold Baranchyk off for too long, and there wasn’t enough on the shots that he did land in return.
The win keeps Baranchyk in contention at 140, as he hopes to work back to another world title fight.
“I didn’t really care about it that much,” Baranchyk said about the physicality of the fight. “I’ve fought opponents that were dirtier than Bracero, so I was ready for that.”
Asked what was next for him, Baranchyk just replied, “We’ll see!” with a smile on his face.