Flyweight Daniel “Chucky” Barrera passed another test as a prospect, defeating Angel Mesa Morales at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, California, on the co-feature of Saturday’s bill.
Barrera earned a hard-fought unanimous decision in another grueling fight early in his career, with scores of 77-75, 78-74 and 77-75.
The first round was a cautious one, with Barrera, 7-0-1 (4 KOs), of Eastvale, California, setting the range against Morales, 8-2-3 (6 KOs), of Ensenada, Mexico. In the second, Morales struggled to close the distance, while Barrera – coming off a grueling bout with Christian Robles – focused on jabbing to Morales’ body. Morales showed signs of life in the third, landing a lead left hook in a wild exchange that forced Barrera to hold.
Barrera found success in the fourth as he kept his composure, staying on the outside while Morales pressed forward. Barrera was busier in this round, though Morales kept looking for big shots. Rounds 5 and 6 saw Morales press with physical exchanges as Barrera managed the distance, but Morales was willing to walk forward through the fire, connecting with looping shots that landed with occasional success.
With the fight hanging in the balance, Barrera found his rhythm, boxing well in the center of the ring. Though Morales landed eye-catching power shots, Barrera’s punches remained the cleaner ones. In the final round, Barrera flipped the script, pressing forward to walk down Morales, who had been the aggressor all night.
This marked Barrera’s third straight unanimous decision since starting the year with a knockout, with his last two fights representing steps up in competition. Morales saw his two-fight win streak snapped with the loss.
Women’s strawweight Guadalupe Medina, 7-0 (2 KOs), of Maywood, California, earned a hard-fought six-round majority decision over Katherine Lindenmuth, 6-3 (2 KOs), of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Two judges scored it 58-56 for Medina, while another had it 57-57.
Welterweight Gor Yeritsyan, 19-1 (15 KOs), from Yerevan, Armenia, and now fighting out of Hollywood, California, rebounded from his first career defeat with a technical knockout over late replacement Jonathan Romero, 35-6 (19 KOs), of Cali, Colombia. Yeritsyan, who trains at Wild Card Boxing Club with Freddie Roach, ended the fight in the fifth round, with referee Thomas Taylor stopping it at 32 seconds. This was Yeritsyan’s first fight since his split decision loss to Aram Amirkhanyan in July.
In the opening bout of the UFC Fight Pass broadcast, junior lightweight Abel Mejia, 6-0 (5 KOs), of Orange, California, scored a technical knockout over Chicago’s Kevin Mangune, 6-2 (5 KOs), in the sixth and final round. Referee Ray Corona called in the doctor at 2 minutes and 14 seconds of the session, and the fight was halted due to a cut on Mangune caused by a punch from Mejia. Mejia also sustained a cut from a head clash in the third round, finishing the bout with blood on his face. Mejia is now on a three-fight knockout streak.
In the final bout of the UFC Freelim on UFC Fight Pass’ YouTube channel, Umar Dzambekov, 9-0 (6 KOs), of Vienna, Austria, knocked out Eric Robles, 10-4 (9 KOs), of Tijuana, Mexico, in the first round. Dzambekov dropped Robles with a left hand while Robles was against the ropes. Later in the round, a series of punches ending in a cupping left hook to the head sent Robles forward to the canvas. Seconds after Robles got up, Dzambekov landed a short left hook that dropped him again, prompting referee Ivan Guerrero to stop the fight.
Junior featherweight Adan Palma, 10-0 (6 KOs), of San Diego, knocked out Carlos Mujica, 8-8 (2 KOs), of Las Vegas, in the third round at 47 seconds. Palma delivered a perfectly timed right hand that sent Mujica face-first to the canvas, prompting referee Ray Corona to wave off the fight as Palma stumbled attempting to stand.
In the opening bout, lightweight Cesar Villarraga, 10-10-1 (5 KOs), of Bogota, Colombia, assured Sebastian Gutierrez, 6-2-1 (4 KOs), of Oxnard, California, a tough night at the office, winning by split decision. Gutierrez dropped Villarraga with a left hook in the third round. Scores were 57-56 Gutierrez, 58-55 Villarraga and 57-56 Villarraga.
Lucas Ketelle is a proud member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and author of “Inside The Ropes of Boxing” (available on Amazon). Contact him on X @LukieBoxing.
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