Lindolfo Delgado was forced to go the distance for the first time in his career in order to preserve his unbeaten record.

The 2016 Mexican Olympian went all eight rounds in outpointing countryman Salvador Briceno in their ESPN+ aired preliminary bout Saturday evening at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. Judges Lisa Giampa (80-72), Eric Cheek (79-73) and Max DeLuca (79-73) all scored the junior welterweight contest in favor of Delgado, who had previously never fought past the sixth round.

The clash with Guadalajara’s Briceno marked the first for Delgado since September 2019. He has since signed a managerial pact with MTK Global and a promotional contract with Top Rank, making his debut under both banners on Saturday.

The explosiveness that has come throughout his pro career were limited to glimpses, as the 26-year-old showed signs of ring rust particularly in the early rounds. Briceno sought to capitalize, coming forward and showing little concern for Delgado’s vaunted knockout power.

Delgado picked up the pace in round three, connecting with a left hook and working his jab and straight right hand. Briceno didn’t seem fazed, though his offensive attack began to slow down.

Briceno enjoyed a brief surge in round five as blood began to trickle from the nose of Delgado. It wasn’t a momentum-shifting moment, however, as Delgado worked his left hook both upstairs and to the body.

Delgado looked more fluid in round six, the amount of time required to register a knockout in his previous ring appearance. It was the deepest he had been to that point of his career, though that changed once the bell sounded to end the round.

The final two rounds saw Delgado dial up the pressure, to the point of Briceno’s corner telling their charge to clinch when necessary heading into the final three minutes. Delgado went on the attack in the eighth and final round, unable to close the show though cementing a landslide victory as he advances to 12-0 (11KOs).

Briceno falls to 17-7 (11KOs), having now lost four of his last six starts.

Delgado-Briceno headlined an ESPN+ livestream preceding an ESPN-televised tripleheader topped by WBA/IBF bantamweight titlist Naoya Inoue (20-0, 17KOs) versus Michael Dasmarinas (30-2-1, 20KOs).

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox