In the opening fight of tonight's Pacquiao vs Marquez III pay-per-view, super featherweights Juan Carlos Burgos and Luis Cruz put on a nice show over 10 rounds, with Burgos taking a majority decision on scores of 98-92, 97-93, and 95-95. Bad Left Hook scored it 97-93 for Burgos.
Burgos (28-1, 19 KO) threw and landed more punches, and did the flashier work. He also dug down deep, targeting the body for much of the fight, and by the middle rounds, the right eye of Cruz (19-1, 15 KO) was swelling shut.
Cruz was spirited in the fight, but clearly a bit out of his depth. It was no great surprise for those who saw Cruz struggle with Martin Honorio on Showtime this year, but watching him get outboxed by Burgos was a bit troubling for his future. For someone who fancies himself a counter-puncher, Cruz just doesn't do a great job in the counter-punching department, and tends to wait too long. Burgos consistently beat him to the punch, landed the best shots of the fight, and dictated the pace.
Our live round-by-round coverage of the undercard continues with Mike Alvarado vs Breidis Prescott coming next.