The main event was a scheduled 12 round battle of the undefeated bantamweights as Juan Carlos “Baby Pacquiao” Payano (16-0, 8 KOs) faced off in defense of his WBA championship with Rau’shee “Nuke” Warren (13-0, 4 KOs).
Both fighters attacked each other over the first two rounds hoping to detonate something on the others beard and alternated moments of success with neither being substantially hurt.
Payano charged forward in the third and was penalized a point for hitting behind the head. Shortly after, he was warned for holding and hitting.
During another feverish exchange on the inside Payano suddenly collapsed, writhing on the canvas and holding his lower extremity.
The crowd booed their disapproval as the referee patiently waited for him to continue, and warned Warren for a low blow that he may not have seen.
In the fifth stanza, Warren landed a number of effective counter punches and cut Payano over his right eye, though neither was willing to give any quarter to this point in the fight.
The two southpaws continued the quick pace through round seven, with Warren preferring to counter and Payano employing roughhouse tactics and aggression as the crowd began to chant “Rau’shee! Rau’shee!” in support of the American.
An accidental clash of heads opened another cut over the eye of the Dominican, and there appeared to be a shift of momentum to Warren’s advantage until he was penalized two points for throwing Payano to the canvas in a neutral corner.
Warren opened up on the wounded Payano who was clearly showing signs of fatigue in what was a rough round for the champion.
Payano wasn’t ready to call it a night quite yet and started the 10th round quickly and landing a couple of effective combinations though Warren quickly returned the favor and the two exchanged furiously at the bell.
In the 12th and final round, the fight continued as frenetically as it began, though this time Warren’s bomb found the courageous Payano’s beard, dropping him along the ropes as the crowd roared its approval.
In a surprising result, the two points Warren was penalized made a significant difference as Payano retained his belt via unpopular split decision.
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Photos by Suzanna Teresa/PBC
