Puerto Rican junior middleweight Xander Zayas (20-0, 12 KOs) wanted to end his Mayer vs Ryan co-feature with a stoppage, but the durable Damian Sosa (25-3, 12 KOs) wasn’t going down easily, pushing the 22-year-old to settle for a shutout unanimous decision (100-90 3x).
Zayas quickly found his rhythm, sitting on his punches by the third round and answering Sosa’s pressure with sharp counterpunches. Whenever Sosa advanced, Zayas responded with precise power shots, alternating between body and head.
By the middle rounds, Zayas was in total command, buzzing Sosa with a right hand in the sixth. Despite seeking the finish, Zayas couldn’t put Sosa away, as the Mexican warrior held on until the final bell.
Zayas said, “He pushed me and elevated me to the next level. Now, I feel like I’m ready. Before, I felt like I was ready. But now I think I let everybody know that I’m ready for the elite names.
“Man, they said he throws 84 punches per round. I didn’t see that today. I did my job. Now, I just have to be calm, relax, and see what my promoter wants. I want whoever is in the top five.”
Brooklyn-born featherweight Bruce Carrington eked out a hard-fought 10-round majority decision over Ugandan contender Sulaiman Segawa by scores of 95-95 and 97-93 2x.
Segawa (17-5-1, 6 KOs) entered the bout with heightened confidence following his upset win over Ruben Villa in July. He looked to repeat that success against Carrington (13-0, 8 KOs) by catching him with fast counters in the opening rounds.
Carrington found his rhythm by rounds three and four, pressing forward with a focused body attack. But Segawa responded in the fifth, and the two went back and forth as they jockeyed for position and traded single shots while avoiding counters.
Segawa threw more punches throughout the fight (416-358), though he eased off the gas in the final round. Carrington swept the 10th on all three judges’ cards.
Carrington said, “I owe him a lot {for that education tonight}. This is just gonna get me to the next level. I just learned to deal with the off-tempo. I got a couple of things I gotta work on back in the gym. We gotta get back on our beat and have more dominant performances. But as long as we got the ‘W’ at the end of the day, we’re still good.”
Further results
Junior Middleweight: New Jersey’s Vito Mielnicki Jr. (20-1, 12 KOs) made his MSG debut with a hard-fought and deserved 10-round majority decision against Italy’s Khalil El Harraz (16-6-1, 2 KOs). Mielnicki tried to keep the fight at a distance, but El Harraz closed the gap often. When the action moved inside, Mielnicki responded with well-placed body shots to maintain control. Scores: 95-95, 100-90, and 98-92.
Bantamweight: Floyd Diaz (13-0, 3 KOs) tallied an eight-round point verdict over Mario Hernandez (12-5-1, 4 KOs). Diaz connected with counter jabs and check left hooks to keep the aggressive Hernandez at bay before flooring him in the fifth with a perfectly timed right uppercut. Diaz went for the finish, but the resilient Mexican veteran held on until the final bell. Scores: 78-73 2x and 77-74.
Junior Welterweight: Dominican southpaw Elvis Rodriguez (17-1-1, 13 KOs) secured a commanding unanimous 10-round points win over Kendo Castañeda (21-7, 9 KOs). Rodriguez took charge of the fight with body shots in the fourth round, followed by flurries of power punches in the fifth that caused a cut above Castaneda’s left eye. Scores: 100-90 2x and 99-91.
Junior Welterweight: Tiger Johnson (14-0, 6 KOs) overcame his most formidable challenge yet, earning an eight-round unanimous decision against Puerto Rico’s Yomar Alamo (22-3-1, 13 KOs). Johnson managed Alamo’s awkward style with footwork and clinching, landing sharp counters from the outside. Scores: 78-74 2x and 77-75.
Junior Welterweight: Dominican Olympian Rohan Polanco (14-0, 9 KOs) halted Argentine veteran Marcelino Lopez (37-5-1, 22 KOs) in the sixth round. Polanco handed Lopez the first knockdown of his 17-year career with a sharp right uppercut in the third. Lopez survived, but Polanco forced him to take a knee twice in the sixth, leading referee Eddie Claudio to stop the contest at 2:08.
