By Robert Coster

Former two division world champion, WBA#4, IBF#8 Javier Fortuna (33-1-1, 23 KOs) won a clear-cut 10 round decision over fellow Dominican jr lightweight Nicolas Javier (16-1, 9 KOs) in Santo Domingo. Fortuna hurt his right hand in the very first round and had practically to fight one-handed the rest of the bout. In spite of this handicap, Fortuna scored a knockdown in the 5th round and pitched a shutout decision over his young opponent. Said Fortuna after the fight, “I would have liked to score a knockout but hurting my ring hand so early in the fight changed my game plan.”

In another bout, former lightweight title challenger Argenis Lopez (22-1-1, 7 KOs) returned to ring action after a 9-month layoff to score an unpopular decision over Venezuelan veteran Pedro Verdu (20-17-3, 14 KOs).

The card was promoted by Manguita Promotion and Sampson Lewkowicz and held at the Jaragua Renaissance Hotel and Casino.