By Francisco Salazar

It was an ugly win, but Manuel 'Tino' Avila will take it.

With the win, Avila goes to 22-0, 8 KOs, while Ramirez drops to 28-7, 15 KOs.

Avila, who resides in the Northern California city of Fairfield, had scored impressive victories in recent months over the likes of former world title challenger Yoandris Salinas and former contender Rene Alvarado.

Ramirez had won his last three fights against nondescript competition after losing to the likes of Vasyl Lomachenko, Abner Mares, and Oscar Valdez.

"I didn't like this fight, and I feel like it wasn't a fight," said Manuel Avila. "My opponent wasn't throwing punches."

"I feel satisfied with this fight. I showed that I was valiant and I could take on a favored fighter," said Jose Ramirez. "I wasn't in my home territory, and I would've had to knock him out if I were to win."

From the opening bell, Ramirez pressed the action, forcing Avila to fight off his back foot or with his back against the ropes. While the tactic worked at times, the action turned sloppy as Ramirez mostly missed with wild overhand rights and lefts.

Avila did not make things easier for himself as he allowed Ramirez to bully him against the ropes. Avila was the busier and more accurate fighter, but he was not consistent with putting his punches together in each round.

Ramirez was deducted a point in round five for pushing Avila's head down and again in round 10 for holding Avila's arm.

One judge scored the bout 95-93 in favor of Ramirez, but the other two judges scored the bout 99-89 in favor of Avila.
 
The co-main event of the night featured resilient Emilio "The Kid" Sanchez (14-0, 9 KOs) of Pacoima, CA against Guadalajara, Mexico's Diuhl Olguin (10-6-2, 9 KOs) for an eight-round war. The match went all eight rounds, with both fighters displaying their tenacity with heated blows. In the end, the judges all unanimously awarded Sanchez the victory with scores of 77-75, 80-72, 79-73.

"He was a tougher opponent that I thought he was, but we were prepared for that." said Emilio Sanchez. "I had to watch out for his head butts, and keep my distance through out the fight. I'm excited to be able to finish off the year on a positive note with this victory."
 
Opening up the Boxeo Estelar telecast, Pablo "The Shark" Rubio Jr. (8-0, 3 KOs) took on tough opponent Francisco "Panchito" Dominguez (7-9, 1 KO). The fight lasted all rounds, with Rubio hurting Dominguez twice in the bout. The judges all unanimously agreed that Rubio was the victor, with scores 59-54, 60-54, and 60-54 respectively. 

"I thought it was a great fight, and I faced a tough opponent," said Pablo Rubio Jr. "I know I hurt him twice, and I applaud him for being able to make it through the fight. I'm also thankful for my trainer Rudy, who is the reason why I was able to get this victory tonight." 

Top prospect, Luis Coria (2-0, 2 KO) took on Laredo, Texas's Juan Bryand (1-6-1) in a featherweight fight scheduled for four rounds. However, within  2 minutes and 55 seconds into the first round, Coria ended the bout by knocking out Bryand via technical knockout.
 
"I'm glad my fans were able to come out and support," said Luis Coria. "It sucks for my opponent, but we know the risks of being a boxer, and I came to get the job done. I studied him well, and I'm glad I was able to get the stoppage early. This won't be my last fight this 2016."

Tenochtitlan "T-Dog" Nava (4-0, 1 KO) faced Ricky Vasquez (6-3-1, 1 KOs) of Laredo, Texas in a four-round featherweight bout. The bout went the distance, with exchanges leaving Vasquez with a cut left eye in the third round. Ultimately, Nava maintained his undefeated status by majority decision with judges scores of 38-38, 39-37, and 39-37,
 
"I did get frustrated through certain points in the fight," said Tenochtitlan Nava. "His fighting style was slick, and he was able to get in and get out with ease. At that point, my corner encouraged me to step in and use my jab to break in. This was a good experience for me, and I'm glad I got to fight a boxer with a style that I haven't seen before, and on top of that get the win."
 
Opening up the live streamed portion of the night for a scheduled six-round lightweight bout was Azat Hovhannisyan (10-2, 9 KOs) who knocked out Israel Rojas (9-12, 3 KOs) within the first round of the bout at the 1:31 mark by way of a left uppercut sending Rojas straight to the mat.
 
"Every day we train hard, and when the call came to fight, we said yes immediately," said Azat Hovhannisyan. "I'm in the gym preparing my craft, and that's what the fans saw - me using my preparation to take on just another fighter who is just as hungry as I am."

Francisco A. Salazar has written for Boxingscene.com since September of 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (Calif.) Star newspaper, RingTV, and Knockout Nation. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing