Lightweight Abraham Montoya upset unbeaten prospect Antonio Perez on Friday at the Live Nation Archer Music Hall in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Montoya won a split decision, with scores of 95-94 and 96-93 in his favor and one card of 95-94 for Perez.
Montoya held off an early charge from Perez, of nearby Harrisburg, who started fast, looking to land power punches on his slower opponent. Mexico’s Montoya was unfazed, as he continued forward. After two rounds, the writing was on the wall that Perez would have to bring his lunchbox for this fight, as the 31-year-old Montoya was in his face and not going away. By the end of the fourth round, Montoya made it clear that this was going to be a grinding fight for the unbeaten Perez, with an uncertain outcome.
In the fifth, Perez landed hooks to Montoya’s body and Montoya landed an overhand right to Perez’s chin. The two exchanged lots of telling blows in the sixth, with both absorbing punishment. Perez flipped a switch in the seventh, outboxing Montoya for parts of the round – but he still would get hit with big punches when the two got close. The eighth round was grueling, with Perez looking to maintain space and land his faster punches, while Montoya followed him with calculated but slower blows.
A dramatic and defining moment came in the final two minutes of the fight, when an off-balance Perez touched his glove to the canvas as Montoya landed a punch, and the referee ruled it a knockdown. That knockdown won Montoya the fight.
“You figured out who was mas macho tonight,” Montoya said via translator in the ring after the win.
Montoya is 2-2 in his past four fights, having sandwiched losses to Tsendbaatar Erdenebat and Marc Castro between a win over Joseph Diaz Jnr.
Montoya, of Mexicali, Mexico, improved to 24-7-1 (14 KOs), and the 24-year-old Perez, 11-1 (5 KOs), suffered his first loss.
In the co-feature, unbeaten bantamweight Emanuel Moreno won an eight-round unanimous decision over Francisco Portillo. Scores were 78-73, 76-75 and 77-74.
Moreno, a 21-year-old from Wichita Falls, Texas, controlled the entire fight but had to deal with the relentless aggression of the 31-year-old Portillo. Moreno opted for strategy, keeping the fight at range, while Portillo used brute force as his only tactic.
In the fourth round, Portillo, of Tijuana, Mexico, began having success as Moreno’s movement slowed. Moreno responded in the following round with solid inside fighting. Moreno used his advantages in ability and athleticism, while Portillo’s toughness made it competitive.
Moreno improved to 13-0 (3 KOs), while Portillo fell to 20-14-2 (14 KOs).
Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @BigDogLukie.
