Mario Barrios defeated Yordenis Ugás by unanimous decision at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas [Video]

‘El Azteca’ Mario Barrios defeated the Cuban Yordenis Ugás by unanimous decision to take the interim welterweight belt of the World Boxing Council (WBC) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada as part of the main card of the fight between Canelo Álvarez and Jermell Charlo.

The judges gave the cards 117-108, 118-107 and 118-107 in favor of Barrios.

After a first round of testing by both fighters, the one of Mexican descent began with the proposal of jabs to the face of the Santiago native as soon as the bell rang for the second round. The bell saved Ugás after Barrios sent him to the canvas with a good jab.

According to Barrios, the fall of his opponent in the second round was key.

“It certainly set the tone, because at the beginning he surprised me with a good blow to the liver that slowed me down a little. Once I calmed down a little bit and found that quick jab, I was able to start picking up the pace,” said the Texan fighter.

Ugás reacted in the next two rounds, but in the seventh he was almost knocked down again with a combination to the face. Ugas had his right eye practically closed in the tenth round, but he continued to fight forward, which worsened his visibility as he also took a lot of punishment.

But he fell again in the ninth and only because of his heart did he manage to make it the distance. The Cuban lost his mouthguard twice in the twelfth round, the second deliberately, for which the referee deducted a point.

“It has been incredible. All the work we did here in Las Vegas to prepare was worth it. “I was very excited and I feel blessed to be in this position,” Barrios declared after winning the championship.

In the latest WBC rankings, the welterweight contenders in search of Terence Crawford’s crown are the Canadian Cody Crowley, the Cuban Ugás, the Frenchman Souleymane Cissokho and the American Barrios.

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