ISLETA PUEBLO, N.M. -- Five-time world champion Johnny Tapia, no longer the relentless ring savvy battler he once was, scored a majority decision Friday night over little known Evaristo Primero in what could have been Tapia's final fight.

Tapia, who turned 40 earlier this month and was fighting for the first time in nearly a year and a half, landed enough punches to get the win against an opponent who 10 years ago probably wouldn't have lasted three minutes against Tapia, much less take him the distance in the 10-round junior welterweight fight.

One judge scored it 98-92 for Tapia and the other had Tapia ahead 96-94. The third judge called it a draw.

"I did what I had to do to win," said Tapia, who then dodged the question of whether this really was his final bout.

Moments later, Tapia tried three times to pull off a backflip, one of his signature moves of the past. Each time he missed the landing, coming up short and landing on his knees.

It mattered little to the sellout crowd of 3,000 who packed into an Indian casino to watch the state's most popular fighter.

Primero, from El Paso, Texas, never posed a threat to Tapia (56-5-2), but he made it interesting. Bleeding from a cut above his right ear, the 29-year-old repeatedly traded punches with Tapia.

As the final seconds ticked off, Primero (14-10-1) -- without a win since October of 2001 -- motioned to Tapia to bring it on.

Just getting an opponent turned into an adventure.

Billed as Tapia's "Final Fury," it turned into a fiasco of musical chair opponents long before the first bell rang.

Tapia initially was supposed to fight Ilido Julio (35-10-1) of Colombia. When Julio failed his physical late Thursday, promoter Lenny Fresquez got Paulino Villalobos of Vera Cruz, Mexico.

Tapia's camp rejected Villalobos and his dubious record of 26-35-1, and Alberto Cepeda of Juarez, Mexico, became Tapia's third designated opponent -- for about an hour.

Cepeda was replaced by Primero, who was supposed to fight an exhibition six-round bout but suddenly found himself in the main event.

Fresquez declined to discuss the different lineups.

"That's boxing," was his only response.