Ortiz vs Kavaliauskas results and highlights: Vergil Ortiz drops Egidijus Kavaliauskas five times en route to 8th round TKO

Vergil Ortiz TKO-8 Egidijus Kavaliauskas (2:59)

Rising welterweight star Vergil Ortiz (17-0, 17 KOs) put another notch in his belt tonight, knocking rugged contender Egidijus Kavaliasukas (22-2-1) in the 8th round of their DAZN main event. Ortiz got off to a good start tonight, showcasing a sharp jab that used to largely control the aggression of Kavaliauskas, doing more and more effective damage as the fight wore on.

Ortiz suffered a scary moment in the second round when Kavaliauskas visibly hurt Ortiz and although Kavaliauskas tries to press the action at that point, Ortiz was sturdy enough to recover and regain control of the fight. In the very next round Ortiz would land a sharp jab at close range that put Kavaliauskas down, but then in Round 8 the wheels completely fell off of Kavaliauskas.

Round 8 would feature four Ortiz knockdowns of Kavaliauskas, with Kavaliauskas doing his best to get up to continue each and every time, but the last one was clearly enough as the referee stepped in to stop the fight at the 2:59 mark.

In the post-fight interview Ortiz would make it clear that he still wants to fight Terence Crawford but said he’s ready and willing to fight any top welterweight in the world right now.

Roger Gutierrez UD-12 Rene Alvarado (116-112, 116-112, 115-112)

In the third meeting between junior lightweights Roger Gutierrez and Rene Alvarado, it was Gutierrez who once again came out on top, taking a unanimous decision on two official scores of 116-112 and one 115-113. Gutierrez (26-3-1, 20 KO) didn’t thrill the audience with his performance, but he fought a disciplined fight, looking to utilize his height and reach while picking spots to counter as Alvarado came forward.

This fight wasn’t nearly as good as the first two meetings between the two, but Gutierrez did enough to do some visible damage to Alvarado’s face down the stretch and he ultimately got the win to move forward in his career.

Felix Alvarado TKO-1 Israel Vazquez (2:50)

Argentina’s Felix Alvarado (37-2, 32 KOs) continued with his red hot momentum, lighting up Israel Vasquez (10-5-2) in under one round of light flyweight action before the referee was forced to step in to halt the fight. Alvarado badly hurt Vazquez with body shots early on and it was just a matter of time before the end came, which it did at the 2:50 minute mark after Alvarado leveled Vazquez with a hook. Vazquez would make it to his feet but the referee didn’t like how he looked and stopped the fight right there.

George Rincon UD-8 Nikolai Buzolin (80-72, 80-72, 80-72)

In the DAZN opener, 140lb prospect George Rincon (12-0, 7 KOs) scored a unanimous decision in a rather dominant, if not unappealing, win over Nikolai Buzolin (8-4-1, 4 KOs). Buzolin offered a very awkward style and motion that made things difficult for Rincon, but not so much that he was clearly the one landing the better punches throughout the fight — not much of a fight by way of highlights, however.