An accidental clash of heads brought an early end to the night for jr. middleweights Vanes Martirosyan and Erislandy Lara. Unfortunately for both fighters, neither one of them came out victorious as the fight was ruled a technical draw. Martirosyan was the aggressor throughout the bout, getting the respect of Lara early after landing some heavy shots. Lara, however, used his better technical skills to counter and potshot throughout the rounds.
The fight was definitely close, as both men appeared to be implementing their game plans. The bad blood between them, however, made the action ugly at times, as both fighters used dirty tactics throughout the course of the bout. At the start of the 9th round, an accidental headbutt opened up a nasty cut over the eye of Martirosyan, forcing the doctor to call a halt to the action. In the end, the judges scored the bout 86-85 (Martirosyan), 87-84 (Lara), and 86-86, resulting in the technical draw.
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