By Jake Donovan

The main event ended in a no-contest. A returning ex-titlist picked up a controversial technical knockout. A bout to determine a future challenger for Naoya Inoue ended in a stalemate and an interim title remaining vacant.


Former flyweight titlist Hernan 'Tyson' Marquez managed to score an 8th round stoppage over Jose Tirano, although the controversial ending prompted even his hometown crowd to boo the final verdict.

The bout was Marquez' third since a knockout loss to McJoe Arroyo in their title fight eliminator last summer. The setback and subsequent fights have offered the suggestion that perhpas the diminutive knockout artist has seen better days, even at all of 26 years of age. 

Marquez jumped out to an early lead, rocking Tirano late in the opening round and remaining in control through the end of round two. What developed as a showcase soon transitioned into an awkward, sluggish affair, which favored Tirano, who took the fight on very late notice. 

The moments in which Tirano managed to fight back didn't exactly suggest a shift in momentum. It was, however, enough to convince the declining ex-champ that no fight is a given at this stage of his career.

A cut over Marquez' left eye became a brief cause of concern, although Tirano appeared too spent to capitalize. The Culiacan-based journeyman twice fell to the canvas in round eight, both occasions ruled as slips. 

The second trip to the canvas could have been ruled a knockdown, as Marquez landed no fewer than four clean left hands before Tirano pitched forward in an attempt to clinch his way out of trouble. Only because Marquez offered a slight shove behind Tirano's neck was the sequence not ruled a knockdown.

That doesn't mean Tirano wasn't separatedd from his senses. He was slow to rise to his feet, with further confusion coming from one of his cornermen who was frantically waving his arms in the air. It appeared as if he was trying to tell Tirano to take his time getting to his feet, but the referee decided upon closer examination that the fighter was unfit to continue.

Tirano immediately protested the verdict, with the same cornerman jumping on the ring apron and screaming at the third man. Alas, it fell on deaf ears as the fight was stopped at 2:09 of round eight. 

A junior middleweight bout between Ramon Alvarez and Richard Gutierrez ended in a No-Contest due to a clash of heads.  

Gutierrez was clipped on the chin by a headbutt midway through round four, producing a cut inside his lip. Time was called to allow the ringside physician to examine the wound, but informed the referee to stop the contest when it was deemed too severe to soldier on. 

Both bouts aired live on TV Azteca in Mexico and via 30-minute delay on UniMas in the United States.

Also on the show, David Carmona and Walter Parrenas fought to a 12-round draw in their vacant interim junior bantamweight tltle fight. Carmona was dropped in round two, but finished strong to avoid suffering a major upset. A full recap can be found HERE . 

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox