Tiger Johnson predictably made short work of an overmatched opponent.

The highly regarded welterweight prospect and US Olympian from Cleveland, Ohio, was in sharp form Saturday night, dropping woebegone Agustin Kucharski of Argentina twice en route to a third-round stoppage on the undercard of the Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. Danny Dignum middleweight main event at Resorts World in Las Vegas.

Thirty seconds into round three of their scheduled six round welterweight bout, Johnson dropped Kucharski with a counter right hand over the jab. Kucharski would get back on his feet. 

Johnson kept his composure and calmly clocked Kucharski with another overhand right that immediately dropped Kucharski to his knees. Although Kucharski managed to beat the count, Kucharski’s corner immediately threw in the towel, prompting the referee to halt the bout.

The official time of stoppage was 54 seconds of the third round.

Johnson improves to 4-0, 2 KOs; Kucharski falls to 8-5-1, 3 KOs. 

Adam Lopez and William Encarnacion delivered an unexpected barnburner.

In the end, Lopez got the upper hand in their entertaining eight-round featherweight bout on the undercard of the Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. Danny Dignum middleweight main event at Resorts World in Las Vegas.

All three judges had it 76-74, 77-74, and 77-74 for the native of Glendale, California.

It was hardly a breezy fight for Lopez, 26, who suffered two knockdowns in the bout. The first came in the opening round, when 33-year-old Encarnacion of the Dominican Republic dropped Lopez with a counter right hand over Lopez’s right uppercut. The second occurred in the third round, when Encarnacion connected on a hard right hand.

Despite those faux pas, Lopez controlled most of the round behind his jab, volume punching, and inside work. Encarnacion faded late in the fight and appeared hurt multiple times, although he never went down

After getting up from the first knockdown in the opening round, Lopez (16-3, 6 KOs) answered back with a three punch combination that hurt Encarnacion (19-3, 15 KOs).

Lopez took control in the second round. He clocked Encarnacion with a right hand. The two traded hard blows in the second half of the round, with Lopez digging particularly hard to the body.

Lopez and Encarnacion traded bombs in the middle of the ring midway through round three. Lopez got back on his jab, but late in the round, Encarnacion hurt Lopez with the uppercut. Encarnacion then followed up with a booming right hand that put Lopez down on the canvas for the second time in the fight.

Lopez fared better in the fourth round, but still looked shaky at times. Encarnacion connected on a left hook on the temple.

Lopez continued to box in the fifth round. Midway through, Lopez blitzed Encarnacion with a sharp one-two. Lopez had more success with the right hand, landing a strafing lead moments later.

Encarnacion was sternly warned by the referee at the start of the sixth round for pushing down on Lopez. A seemingly fatigued Encarnacion found himself the target of several salvos by Lopez, including a right hand that jerked Encarnacion’s head back. Lopez stalked Encarnacion behind his jab. Lopez absorbed a few punches in the waning seconds of the round but was otherwise dominant in the period.

Lopez continued to find success in round seven. He hurt Encarnacion midway through the round with a combination punctuated by an uppercut. But Encarnacion would roar back and land a combination of his own. The two went back and forth to close a competitive round.

Encarnacion briefly staggered Lopez again to start the eighth and final round. Lopez would regain his composure and, in return, hurt Encarnacion to the body. Both fighters traded wild shots for the last 30 seconds of the round.

In the preceding bout, reclamation project Karlos Balderas weathered some bumpy moments in an otherwise clear win.

The US Olympian from Santa Maria, California, dropped Ruben Cervera of Santa Marta, Colorado, twice en route to a unanimous decision in their six round junior lightweight bout.

Balderas won on scorecards that read 57-55, 58-54, and 58-54.

This was Balderas’ fourth straight win since his shocking upset loss to Rene Giron in 2019.

The sharp, hard punching Balderas managed to deck Cervera two times with his left hook, but Cervera took both shots well. Moreover, Cervera landed telling blows of his own

Both fighters trade hooks to start the third round. Balderas dropped Cervera again with a counter left hook in the pocket over Cervera’s lazy left. Balderas bided his time and followed up with a hard overhand right.

In the sixth and final round, both fighters holstered their offense, refraining from going all out.