Starling Castillo: Grateful That Sampson Believes In Me To Put Me In These Tough Fights

There is an argument to be made that Starling Castillo is the most proven and the most aggressively matched among the six fighters appearing on Friday’s ShoBox card.

The unbeaten Dominican prospect wouldn’t bother getting out of bed for anything less.

“It feels good, I’m grateful that Sampson Lewkowicz, my promoter, believes in me to put me in these tough fights,” Castillo told BoxingScene.com. “The goal is to continue to grow and to become a bigger name in this sport.”

Castillo (16-0, 12KOs) will attempt to do that in a dangerous showdown versus fellow unbeaten lightweight Otar Eranosyan (10-0, 6KOs). The two will collide as part of a tripleheader featuring six unbeaten prospects on Friday’s edition of Showtime’s ShoBox: The New Generation card from Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida.

The bout represents the third consecutive step-up fight for Castillo, a 26-year-old lightweight from Quina Sueneo, Dominican Republic. The push in competition has coincided with his stateside arrival, with Castillo appearing on his third platform in as many fights. It began with a DAZN-aired clash with unbeaten Miguel Contreras, who Castillo blew away inside of two rounds last July in Los Angeles.

Less than two months later came his toughest test to date. Castillo fended off former title challenger Juan Carlos Burgos to claim a ten-round unanimous decision live on Fox TV from The Armory in Minneapolis. Castillo had won his previous four bouts by knockout but had to rely more on his boxing skills to prevail versus Burgos.

Next up is a similarly physically imposing matchup with Eranosyan, a no-nonsense Georgian brawler now based out of Miami Beach. Eranosyan has been pushed at a rapid pace, entering his 11th career fight—all of which has taken place since the pandemic since turning pro in August 2020.

“I love these tough challenges,” insists Castillo, a training stablemate of current junior middleweight contender Sebastian Fundora. “I prepare hard for these opportunities. I work hard to beat the best competition my people can find for me.”

Castillo-Eranosyan serves as the co-feature of a televised tripleheader. The show is headlined by a ten-round junior lightweight bout between Castillo’s countryman, Luis ‘The Twist’ Nunez (15-0, 11KOs) and Puerto Rico’s Carlos Arrieta (14-0, 8KOs).

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox