Live Results: Diego Pacheco vs. Kevin Lele Sadjo

Diego Pacheco had to get up off the canvas to win an ugly clinch-filled 12-round unanimous decision over Kevin Lele Sadjo on Saturday night in Stockton, California.

Pacheco was dropped in the eighth round by a left hook from Sadjo. The crowd booed Pacheco throughout the fight for the excessive holding he used to neutralize Sadjo’s offense.

The scores were 117-110, 116-111, and 115-112.

“This is what I expected. Tonight, I proved I’m built for this. He was coming in with his head a lot. It was difficult for me to work,” said Pacheco. “It’s part of the sport. He kind of caught me while I was throwing a punch. I wasn’t hurt. I usually win rounds clearly. I knew the rounds were close. The fight that interests me the most is Jaime Munguia. He’s a Mexican warrior. I know the fans would love that in LA.

Pacheco vs. Sadjo

Round 1: Pacheco landing jabs and right hands from the outside. Holding the shorter Sadjo each time he nears. A lot of clinching throughout the round by Diego.

Round 2: The 6’4″ Pacheco landing right hands, catching Sadjo coming. Again, a lot of grabbing and holding by Pacheco. When he’s holding, he’s not letting go of Sadjo. It’s ugly to watch.

Round 3: Pacheco jabbing, moving, turning, and tying up Sadjo. Rinse and repeat. The referee needs to start thinking about a warning for the holding.

Round 4: Diego, looking like a human octopus, holds and wrestles Sadjo throughout the round. It’s hard to believe Pacheco used to train with David Benavidez. He fights nothing like ‘The Mexican Monster.’ A lot of spoiling from Diego.

Round 5: A better round by Sadjo. He landed some big looping shots to the head of Pacheco. However, still a lot of holding by Pacheco. The crowd is booing the holding from Diego.

Round 6: Good work on the outside from Pacheco, but still holding like a mad, making it hard for Sadjo to throw. Pacheco was cut from a clash of heads caused by his holding.

Round 7: This is so ugly to watch, and not because of Sadjo. Promoter Eddie Hearn should have buried this fight on the undercard. Pacheco is just tying up repeatedly without being warned or penalized.

Round 8: Sadjo drops Pacheco with a left hook early in the round. Pacheco mauls the last two minutes, holding and wrestling constantly. Staggered late with a left hook from Sadjo.

Round 9: Pacheco is getting the better of the action using his punch, grab, and wrestling style. The crowd is booing madly at the holding by Pacheco. The referee is useless.

Round 10: Huge right hand from Sadjo at the two-minute mark, but then instantly grabbed and held by Pacheco. The last minute is pure holding by Pacheco while the crowd boos.

Round 11: Pacheco hurts Sajdo late while wrestling him. He then flurries, but Sadjo ties him up. The last seconds a lot of holding from both.

Round 12: Instead of going for the knockout, Pacheco spent the entire round mauling Sadjo, and only letting go long enough to land a shot or two before holding again. It’s the most amount of holding I’ve ever seen from a fighter without being disqualified or penalized. Pacheco landed the better shots, but only because he prevented Sadjo from punching the entire round. It’s not a surprise that Pacheco was lowered in the rankings.

Joe Cordina defeated hometown fighter Gabe Flores by a grueling 12-round unanimous decision in the chief support bout to win the WBO International lightweight title.

Cordina was penalized for hitting Flores with rabbit punches in the sixth round. He’d been warned multiple times by the referee before the point deduction. Flores landed fast combinations to get the better of the former IBF super featherweight champion Cordina in round seven.

In the championship rounds, Cordina, 34, came on to dominate the tired-looking Flores. In the 11th round, Joe hurt Flores with a right to the head. He then unloaded on him with a flurry of shots, but couldn’t finish him. Both fighters exchanged hard shots in the 12th, with Cordina connecting with the better ones.

The scores were 117-110, 115-112, and 114-113.

Ernesto Mercado put on a punching power display, dropping veteran Antonio Moran three times en route to scoring a sixth-round knockout to win the WBO International light welterweight title. The official time of the stoppage was at 2:37 of round six.

Mercado, 24, was knocked down in the first round with a looping right hook to the head. In the sixth, Ernesto knocked with a hard left hook in close, then followed with another left to the head to put Moran down.

The referee took a close look at Moran when he got back up before letting the fight continue. Mercado pounced on Moran, nailing him with a left-right combination to drop him for the second time in the sixth. Referee Michael Margado halted the contest at that point.

Skye Nicolson defeated Yuliahn Luna Avila by a 10-round unanimous decision to win the WBC interim super bantamweight title. The scores were 98-92, 98-92, and 97-93.

The southpaw Nicolson used her longer reach to control the fight on the outside. When Availa would come within range, Skye would connect with right hooks. From the seventh round on, Nicolson loaded up with left hands, landing clean but without much power. Avila showed little aggression in the last three rounds, giving away the fight without trying hard.

Arturo Cardenas never let Cesar Vaca Espinoza into the fight, controlling the pace and distance throughout a wide points win.

Cheavon Clarke turned the screw on Anthony Hollaway and didn’t let up, the pressure forcing Hollaway’s corner to pull him out after four rounds.

Sachery Sam was levels above Brandon Medina Guerrero in their featherweight bout, piling up rounds on the way to a one-sided decision.

Cesar Olvera and Victor Saravia couldn’t be separated over four rounds, their lightweight fight ending in a majority draw after a messy, back-and-forth contest.