UNDERCARD
Fidel Maldonando Jr. survived several scary moments to drop and eventually stop Nicaragua's Nelson Lara midway through the eighth and final round of their welterweight co-feature battle.
There's rarely a dull moment whenever Maldonando appears on television, and Monday's affair was no exception. On paper, Lara was made to order for the Albuquerque brawler, but refused to go away quietly. Maldonando learned this lesson the hard way, taking a pounding in a wild fourth round that could rival for one of the year's best three-minute frames.
The rally by Lara served as a wake-up call for the heavily favored Maldonando, who came back strong in round five. Action remained in one direction until Lara once again took the lead in a free-swinging round seven.
It turned out to be his last hurrah; Maldonando pounded Lara into a corner in round eight, forcing a knockdown when it was ruled that the ropes were the only thing holding him up. The visiting underdog beat the count, but a flurry by Maldonando promoted the referee to intervene.
Maldonando has now won six straight as he improves to 19-2 (16KOs). Lara falls to 15-6-4 (8KOs).
In a fight that garnered airtime for no other reason than his familiar bloodlines, fringe lightweight contender Ricardo Alvarez - the older brother of former 154 lb. titlist Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez - struggled to an eight-round decision over faded former bantamweight titlist John Michael Johnson in the televised opener.
Scores were 77-75, 78-74 and a "We Love Canelo" tribute of 79-73 in favor of Alvarez, who even at age 32 still had 14 years and eight pounds on the 46-year old Johnson, who returned to the ring last November following an 11-year retirement.
The decision was widely booed by the capacity crowd on hand, though most likely due to Johnson's Texas roots, hailing from San Antonio.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as the Records Keeper for the Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and a member of Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox