The night's main event was an exciting inside battle between Tony Luis and (formerly) undefeated prospect Karl Dargan. Luis (19-2, 7 KO) came into the fight a seven-to-one underdog, but nobody seemed to have told him. He battled with utter disdain for Dargan's skill. Luis made good use of his jab early to close the distance and get to the inside, where he was the vastly superior technician, employing a variety of veteran tricks to outmaneuver and outpunch his opponent in close. Dargan (17-1, 9 KO) seemed lost at sea, and by the eighth round he was positively drowning under Luis' onslaught. In the tenth, Luis put his signature on the fight with a left hook that put Dargan on his knees.
This bout smacked of the fight between Mauricio Herrera and Jose Benavidez Jr. earlier this year, in which Herrera used gritty in-fighting tactics to outwork his athletically gifted foe, who was content to absorb punishment and occasionally counter. Herrera was robbed of a decision that night, but Luis had better luck with the judges, who granted him a well-deserved unanimous decision.
Tony Luis defeats Karl Dargan by Unanimous Decision (97-92 x 2, 99-90)
Bad Left Hook had it 100-89 for Tony Luis, a complete shutout.
The second bout of the evening was a thoroughly depressing contest between Sullivan Barrera and Jeff "Left Hook" Lacy. Sullivan (15-0, 10 KO) knocked down his opponent in the first round. Lacy (27-6, 18 KO), who once fought Joe Calzaghe and Roy Jones Jr., managed to survive the opening frame, but otherwise had absolutely nothing for his opponent. At 37 years old, its getting harder and harder to watch Lacy in the ring, and this night was no exception. The referee mercifully stopped the bout in round five.
Sullivan Barrera defeats Jeff Lacy by TKO (referee stoppage), Round 5.
The first televised bout did not glimmer with promise at the start, as both Russell Lamour and Thomas Falowo seemed to lack the polish of true prospects. The bout quickly picked up, however, as Falowo (13-3, 8 KO) pressed the action, doggedly bringing the fight to his opponent and slugging it out in the pocket, where he did his best work. Lamour (11-1, 5 KO) seemed somewhat lost, as he vacilated aimlessly between ineffective out-fighting and hit-or-miss in-fighting. Though he timed some clean counters, he couldn't keep deter Falowo, who treated this New England middleweight title bout as if it was the world championship on the line.
Thomas Falowo defeats Russell Lamour by Unanimous Decision (78-74, 77-75 x 2)
Bad Left Hook had it 77-75 in favor of Falowo.