Xander Zayas (19-0, 12 KOs) defeated a shell of Patrick Teixeira (34-5, 25 KOs) by a ten-round unanimous decision in their junior middleweight fight in the headliner at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The scores were 100-90, 100-90, and 99-91. Teixeira, 33, was just the shell of the fighter he’d been five years ago and was there to survive. He didn’t even try to engage with Zayas.
Teixeira was cut over the right eye in the eighth round and was on his bike in the ninth and tenth. It was a very dull fight, and Top Rank dropped the ball by choosing this guy as Zayas’ opponent for a showcase fight, which backfired on them.
The fight showed that Zayas doesn’t possess the killer instinct of the other top fighters at 154, and he’s NOT off the old block in terms of being another Miguel Cotto. Zayas is too safety-first and defensive.
Undercard results
Featherweight Bruce Carrington (12-0, 8 KOs) stopped Bryan De Gracia (29-4-1, 25 KOs) by an eighth-round TKO win. Carrington, 27, knocked De Gracia down in rounds five and seven.
Carrington was given credit for a knockdown in the fifth round when he hit De Gracia behind the head with a right-hand rabbit punch. The referee didn’t say anything, so the knockdown stood.
In the eighth, Carrington trapped De Gracia against the ropes and unloaded on him with a barrage of punches, prompting referee Eric Dali to step in and stop the contest. The time of the stoppage was at 2:56 mark.
De Gracia was on his bike in the seventh, moving constantly. Carrington trapped him against the ropes and knocked him partially down, leaving him hanging on the bottom rope. While De Gracia was defenseless, Carrington hit him with two punches to the head.
Unbeaten light welterweight prospect Delante ‘Tiger’ Johnson (13-0, 6 KOs) won a tougher-than-expected eight-round unanimous decision over Tarik Zaina (13-2-1, 8 KOs). The scores were 79-73, 78-74 and 77-75.
Of those three, the 77-75 score was the more realistic one, as Tiger, 25, just barely won and looked poor throughout.
Zaina landed many looping shots to the head and did an excellent job mixing up his punches. It wasn’t until the eighth round that Tiger finally came alive and got Zaina’s attention with a flurry of hard shots.
Flyweight Andy Dominguez (11-1, 6 KOs) defeated Christopher Rios (10-2, 7 KOs) by an eight-round majority decision. The scores were 76-76, 78-74 and 77-75. The two fighters traded shots at close range the entire fight, making it virtually impossible to tell who deserved the win.
Junior middleweight prospect Jahi Tucker (11-1-1, 5 KOs) beat Quincy LaVallais (17-5-1, 12 KOs) by an eight-round unanimous decision. Tucker, 21, hit LaVallias at will with uppercuts in the early rounds of the fight, hurting him at times.
Somehow, LaVallias went the distance despite taking a ton of punishment. The scores were 80-72, 80-72 and 80-72. The referee gave LaVallias a time out in the eighth round after Tucker hit him in the lower back. Tucker did a lot of showboating in the fight and showed immaturity.
Tucker’s lack of punching power was a problem for him, as was his poor defense. LaVallias hit him with many clean shots, and he was fortunate that he wasn’t a bigger puncher than this guy.
Unbeaten super featherweight prospect Ofacio Falcon (12-0, 6 KOs) defeated Antonio Dunton El Jr (5-3-2, 2 KOs) by a six-round unanimous decision. The scores were 59-54, 60-53 and 60-53.
Falcon knocked Dunton El Jr. down with a jab in round two. Dunton El Jr. was off balance when hit, causing him to fall.
For most of the fight, Dunton El Jr. pressured Falcon, but he couldn’t get to him due to his fast retreating movement, similar to Shakur Stevenson’s fast feet. It wasn’t entertaining to watch for the most part, but Dunton El Jr. made it interesting with his attacking style of the unbeaten Falcon.
Heavyweight prospect Ali Feliz (2-0, 2 KOs) destroyed badly over-matched Lemir Isom Riley (4-3, 2 KOs), knocking him out in the first round.
The 20-year-old Feliz landed a big right hand that dropped Riley on the canvas. Referee Eddie Claudio stepped in and waved it off at 1:25 of the round.
Feliz’s performance was good. He showed that he’s got the power to make him a factor against the top heavyweight in the division. However, Top Rank will likely bring Feliz along slowly due to his age and limited 6’2″ height.
