ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey – Euri Cedeno barely needed 90 seconds Saturday night to prove his complete superiority over William Townsel.

The hard-hitting Dominican southpaw overpowered Townsel almost immediately in their scheduled eight-round middleweight fight at Boardwalk Hall’s Adrian Phillips Ballroom. He dropped Townsel twice, which caused referee Eric Dali to stop their fight just 1:41 into it on the Jaron Ennis-Roiman Villa undercard.

Cedeno improved to 5-0 and produced his fifth knockout. Townsel lost for the first time as a pro (5-1, 4 KOs).

Cedeno drilled Townsel with a straight left that knocked Townsel flat on his back 1:10 into the opening round. Townsel got up, but Cedeno nailed him with another left hand that prompted Dali to move in to halt the action as Townsel was headed to the canvas for the second time.

Cedeno represented the Dominican Republic at the 2020 Summer Olympics almost two years ago in Tokyo. He fought an undefeated opponent for the first time Saturday night in five professional fights.

Townsel, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, won each of his four previous bouts by knockout. Facing Cedeno was a huge step up in competition for the 28-year-old Townsel, though.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.