In Los Angeles, Rio Rancho boxer Brian Mendoza defeated Thomas LaManna by unanimous, 10-round decision on Saturday.
The official scorecards read 98-92, 98-92 and 96-94 for Mendoza (19-1, 13 KOs). LaManna, of Millville, New Jersey, is 28-4-1 (10 KOs).
The decision was viewed as controversial in some quarters, and Mendoza acknowledged on social media that even he believed a 98-92 scorecard in his favor was hard to support.
But he nonetheless was happy with the result of his first fight at the junior middleweight limit of 154 pounds, having moved up from welterweight (147), and his first fight under his new contract with Premier Boxing Champions.
“I know it was closer than the judges said and everything but I pulled out,” he said. “Showed my heart and everything. First fight at 154, felt strong, let’s go.”
Mendoza, a Cleveland High School graduate, now lives and trains in Las Vegas, Nevada.
