It was counter punching over relentless pressure.
Alberto Puello withstood the constant aggression of Batyr Akhmedov to win a split decision and the vacant WBA 140-pound title on the Omar Figueroa Jr.-Sergey Lipinets card Saturday in Hollywood, Florida.
Puello was the second Dominican to win a world title on the card, as Hector Garcia took Roger Gutierrez’s 130-pound belt earlier on the card.
Puello (21-0, 10 KOs) appeared to be too slick for Akhmedov (9-2, 8 KOs) for the first several rounds, using quick combinations to build a lead on the cards.
However, by Round 4, Akhmedov picked up his pace and never slowed down. He battered Puello’s body from that point on to make the fight competitive.
Puello took a great deal of punishment but never stopped countering, catching Akhmedov with quick, eye-catching shots as the Los Angeles-based Uzbek came forward.
That evidently impressed the two judges who gave the fight to Puello by a wide margin.
