Body investment and steady pressure force ninth-round stoppage
Emiliano Vargas (17-0, 14 KOs) invested early and finished late. His ninth-round stoppage of Agustin Quintana showed patience beyond his years at 140 pounds.
Vargas did not rush it. He invested to the body early, kept his lead hand busy, and stepped around Quintana’s counters. By the middle rounds he was setting his feet and letting the combinations go, mixing straight rights with short left hooks inside. Quintana held his ground and fired back, but the exchanges grew one-sided as the rounds wore on.
By the ninth, Vargas was walking him onto shots. The jab was snapping his head back and the right hand followed with full extension. Quintana absorbed too much along the ropes. When he made it back to the corner after the ninth, his legs were unsteady and his face told the story. Ref Caiz studied him briefly, then ended it.
Abel Ramos (29-6-3, 22 KOs) edged Tahmir Smalls (16-1, 11 KOs) by split decision in a 10-round welterweight fight that swung on inside work. One judge scored it 96-94 for Smalls. The other two had it 98-92 and 97-93 for Ramos.
Ramos pressed behind a steady jab and forced exchanges at close range. Smalls boxed well in spots, picking counters and moving laterally, but Ramos kept stepping in, working the body, and finishing rounds with harder shots. His willingness to trade in tight appeared to sway two of the cards.
Opening the DAZN broadcast, Jordan Martinez (16-0-1, 15 KOs) and Arturo Cardenas (17-0-2, 9 KOs) fought to a split draw over 10 rounds at super bantamweight. One judge saw it 98-92 for Martinez. Another had it 96-94 for Cardenas. The third scored it 95-95.
Martinez applied pressure and threw in volume, particularly with the right hand over the top. Cardenas boxed off the back foot, picking spots and turning him. Neither man separated himself over the second half, and the scores reflected it.
On the untelevised undercard, Óscar Álvarez Guerrero (15-2, 12 KOs) won a unanimous decision over Trini Ochoa (21-1, 9 KOs) in an eight-round super lightweight fight, with scores of 79-73 and 78-74 twice.
Hector Beltran (7-0, 5 KOs) took a six-round unanimous decision over Cesar Diaz (10-2, 5 KOs), 60-54 on all three cards at super welterweight.
Phillip Vella (5-0, 2 KOs) outpointed Brayan Ramos Armenta (8-8-1, 2 KOs) over six rounds at bantamweight, 60-54 across the board.
Rahman Muhammad (2-0, 2 KOs) stopped Mitchell McFadden (1-1, 1 KO) in the second round of a scheduled four-round welterweight fight, ending it with sustained pressure along the ropes.