- A mixed martial artist who has turned to boxing regularly during the pandemic has taken the sport by storm this summer.
- Meet Clay Collard, a 27-year-old former UFC fighter who has won four boxing matches in 2020.
- His most recent victory was Tuesday, when he knocked his opponent down three times on the way to a second round stoppage.
- As he had his arm held aloft, he told his mother he loved her.
- Watch the knockout below.
Clay Collard has become one of the most popular boxers of the summer, adding another stunning knockout to his record Tuesday.
The former UFC fighter, 27, won for the fourth time in 2020 and the second within Top Rank's Las Vegas "Bubble" when he fought Lorawnt T. Nelson in a lightweight match.
Collard dropped Nelson three times on his way to a second round stoppage win, advancing his record to eight wins (three knockouts) against two losses and three draws.
"I showed my boxing skills in there tonight," Collard said after the fight. "I'm unorthodox, but I get the job done."
According to Compubox data sent to Insider, Collard outlanded Nelson 61 punches to 12 in five minutes and one second of ring time.
Watch Collard dominate Nelson here:
When he got his hand raised by the referee, Collard could be heard saying: "Hi mommy, I love you."
Collard has accumulated a cult following for the manner in which he has turned his boxing career around, going from "being set up to be a punching bag for young prospects" as the ESPN writer Steve Kim noted, to a prospect slayer himself.
He went into the Nelson fight having beaten three fighters with previously undefeated records, and the senior Boxing Scene reporter Jake Donovan is touting Collard as the boxing prospect of the year.
Bob Arum is reportedly planning to bring Collard back to another Top Rank show in August, which would be his third fight in the coronavirus era and his fifth of the year.
"As soon as Top Rank wants me back, I'll be ready," Collard said. "Next month on ESPN, let's go!"
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