Navarrete pressed forward from the opening bell, forcing Nunez to circle the ring. A wide left hook in the third landed clean. By the fourth, blood was visible beneath Nunez’s right eye as Navarrete continued to outwork him.
Nunez had brief success in the sixth when he pinned Navarrete in a corner with a late flurry, and the seventh featured spirited exchanges from both men. In the eighth, Nunez worked the body and tried to regain ground. But Navarrete repeatedly targeted the injured eye with left hooks, and by the ninth, it was nearly closed.
The ringside physician examined Nunez between rounds as blood ran down the side of his face. The bout was officially halted one second into the 11th round. Referee Ben Rodriguez supervised the main event.
In a welterweight contest, Abel “Abelito” Ramos, 29-6-3 (22), of Casa Grande, AZ, scored a split-decision victory over WBA North American Continental champion Tahmir Smalls, 16-1 (11), of Philadelphia, PA, over 10 competitive rounds.
Smalls used his jab effectively in the opening four rounds, while Ramos, returning after 15 months of inactivity, gradually worked his way into the fight. From rounds five through eight, Ramos invested to the body and began landing the heavier punches. A right hand in the ninth drew blood from Smalls’ mouth. The final round was close, but Ramos’s work in the second half proved decisive.
Judges scored it 98-92 and 97-93 for Ramos, and 96-94 for Smalls. Referee Ben Rodriguez.
In the co-feature, Emiliano “El General” Vargas, 17-0 (12), of Las Vegas, NV, stopped Agustin Ezequiel Quintana, 22-3-1 (13), of San Francisco Solano, Buenos Aires, Argentina, after nine rounds of a scheduled 10-round junior welterweight bout.
Vargas drew blood from Quintana’s mouth in the second round. A clash of heads in the fourth opened a cut over Quintana’s right eyebrow and beneath the eye. Quintana was warned for a low blow in the fifth by referee Raul Caiz Jr. and had solid moments in the fifth and sixth rounds.
Vargas regained control in the seventh and eighth, landing clean shots as another clash of heads caused a cut over Quintana’s left eyebrow. The ringside physician examined Quintana between rounds. In the ninth, Vargas had Quintana holding on as swelling increased around both eyes. After the round, referee Caiz waved off the bout at Quintana’s corner.
In a super bantamweight bout, Arturo Cardenas, 17-0-2 (9), of Sahuayo de Morelos, Michoacan, Mexico, fought to a split draw with Jordan “El Moreno” Martinez, 16-0-1 (15), of Phoenix, AZ, over 10 rounds.
Martinez pressed the action early and appeared to outland Cardenas in the opening rounds. Cardenas responded in the middle rounds, and the fight remained close throughout. The 10th round featured sustained exchanges from both fighters.
Scores were 98-92 Martinez, 96-94 Cardenas, and 95-95 even. Referee Raul Caiz Jr.
In other bouts:
Super lightweight Trini Ochoa, 21-1 (9), of Phoenix, AZ, lost an eight-round decision to Oscar Alvarez Guerrero, 15-2 (12), of Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, Mexico. Scores were 78-74 twice and 79-73.
Bantamweight southpaw Phillip Vella, 5-0 (2), of Henderson, NV, defeated Brayon Ramos Armenta, 8-8-1 (2), of Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, over six rounds, all three judges scoring it 60-54.
Super welterweight Hector “Handsome” Beltran, 7-0 (5), of Dallas, TX, defeated Cesar “Maravilla” Diaz, 10-2 (5), of Atlanta, GA, over six rounds.
Welterweight Rahman Muhammad, 2-0 (2), of Las Vegas, NV, stopped Mitchell McFadden, 1-1 (1), of Atlanta, GA, in two rounds of a scheduled four-round bout.
The ring announcer was David Diamante.
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