Has Rolly Romero lost his hunger? After winning the WBA super lightweight title by beating Ismail Barroso on May 13, 2023, vanity seemed to have crept into him. In an interview with Fight Hub TV in December last year, he sounded in no rush to enter the ring again for a title defense fight. ‘Rolly’ Romero stated that he would rather spend his time relaxing on a “tropical island” than get “punched in the face” by “disgusting dudes” in the gym. Thus, he took a one-year hiatus, which ultimately proved costly.

Romero’s return to the ring this year resulted in a match against Isaac Pitbull Cruz, where the Mexican fighter clearly outperformed him. ‘Rolly’ suffered an eight-round TKO victory and received a much-needed humbling. To make amends, he will compete this year on the undercard of Canelo Alvarez vs Edgar Berlanga’s main event fight. He will go up against Manuel Jaimes on Saturday, September 14th, 2024, at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, for a 10-rounder super-lightweight contest. On that note, let’s explore all the significant ring walkouts of his career ahead of his fight against Jaimes.

A Frank Ocean tune for a title-winning bout!

On May 13, 2023, Rolly Romero paid homage to one of his favorite artists, famous R&B singer and rapper Frank Ocean. In his fight against Ismail Barroso, a confident Romero strolled out to Ocean’s lyrical masterpiece – ‘Pyramids’. Furthermore, he also wore custom-made shoes that featured Simpsons-inspired cover art of Ocean’s song.

The shoe was painted orange as a tribute to Ocean’s Channel Orange album. The word “Channel” also was stitched with rhinestones on the back of the shoe.

Lo-and-behold, it proved to be the biggest night of his fighting career. He stopped the Venezuelan boxer in the ninth round and snatched the WBA super-lightweight title from him, becoming a world champion for the first time in his career.

Even Prince couldn’t save him!

On May 28, 2022, Rolly Romero went up against the most exciting prospect of the lightweight division, Gervonta Davies. For the ring walk, Rollie chose legendary American popstar Prince’s iconic sing “When Doves Cry” from his multiple Grammy-winning best-selling album “Purple Rain”.

Safe to say, Romero has fine taste in music. As the unique 1984 rock-pop ballad played in the background, Romero confidently strolled into the ring wearing a purple outfit to pay tribute to the late American musician. He also wore “Purple Rain” inspired boxing shoes with a portrait of Prince.

However, the distinguished artist’s vocals couldn’t inspire Romero to win on the night. Davis knocked out Rolando Romero with a counter left-handed punch in the sixth round of their boxing match.

Hip Hop saves Rolly Romero?

On August 15, 2020, Romero came into the ring to the soundtrack “Hip Hop Can’t Save Me” by American rapper Young Buck, as he went up against Dominican Republic boxer Jackson Ramirez. Turns out the soundtrack was a savior, as Romero got to keep his undefeated record after he won by a controversial unanimous decision victory.

The fight played out in front of an empty stadium at the Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville, in the United States.“That was pure robbery,” Marinez said about the fight. The punch stats paint a very different story than the judges’ decision as Marinez landed 103/629 total punches, 17 more than Romero, and landed more power punches and jabs.

Coming back to the present, it remains to be seen what fate has in store for Romero’s upcoming fight. Manuel Jaimes won’t be an easy feat as he comes into the fight behind four straight wins, which is better than Rolly’s recent record of two losses in the last three fights. Romero needs to quickly come back to winning ways otherwise lucrative fight offers with elite boxers will dry up pretty quickly.

Can Rolly Romero win his upcoming fight against Manuel Jaimes? Moreover, what do you think his walkout song should be in his upcoming fight? Let us know in the comment section below.