By David Robinett at ringside

The first of two walkout bouts at the MGM Grand Garden Arena featured an intriguing matchup of undefeated older welterweight prospects, with Peter Dobson (11-0, 7 KOs) stopping Emmanuel Medina (16-1, 9 KOs) at 1:18 of round five in a scheduled six round contest. The 29-year old Dobson, who won a regional belt in June 2017 but then promptly sat out the next 18 months due to promotional issues, got off to inauspicious start, getting knocked down by the 30-year old Medina in the second round. Good two way action in round three before Dobson swung the momentum in his favor in round four with a right hook to the body that visibly hurt Medina. Dobson began to pour it on early in round five before a right uppercut dropped Medina for the first time in the fight. Medina beat the count but Dobson forced the stoppage with a series of unanswered shots to the body with Medina doubled over and unable to defend himself.

Lightweight Austin Dulay (14-1, 11 KOs) stopped Justin Pauldo (12-2, 6 KOs) at :46 of round three in a scheduled six round bout.

Efe Ajagba (11-0, 9 KOs) remained undefeated with a solid, if undramatic, ten-round unanimous decision over Ali Eren Demirezen (11-1, 10 KOs) in a matchup of heavyweights who both competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Scores were 97-93, 99-91, 99-91 for Ajagba. Although an Olympian representing his home country of Nigeria, Ajagba might be best known for literally scaring his opponent out of the ring last August, when Curtis Harper walked out of the ring after seeing Ajagba bearing down on him (or due to a pay dispute, depending on whom you believe.) Ajagba was less fearsome this time around, but still effective, relying almost exclusively on his left jab, right hand combination to pile up rounds while Demirezen lunged forward with sweeping left and right hooks that landed occasionally but not enough to cause Ajagba significant trouble.

Welterweight Abel Ramos (25-3-2, 19 KOs) scored an impressive fourth round stoppage of Jimmy Williams (16-3-1, 5 KOs) in a scheduled eight round bout. Ramos, probably best known for his epic slugfest loss to former super lightweight champion Ivan Baranchyk in 2017, wasn’t able to draw Williams into the same style of fight, instead methodically trying to walk down the elusive Williams round after round. Williams, a former Division II college football player who works in between bouts as a school truancy officer, did his best to make himself scarce, using the whole ring to keep as much distance between himself and Ramos where he could utilize his superior height and reach. Williams’ strategy worked for three rounds, but in the fourth Ramos caught Williams with a left hook that stopped him in his tracks, and after that Ramos was able to tee off on Williams. The end came following a series of unanswered power punches by Ramos that prompted referee Kenny Bayless to rescue Williams at 2:43 of the round, following a beautiful right uppercut by Ramos that left Williams holding onto Bayless for several seconds after the stoppage.

Flyweight Genisis Libranza (19-1, 11 KOs) scored a fourth round stoppage over Carlos Maldonado (11-4, 7 KOs), battering his opponent against the ropes until referee Russell Mora stepped in with just two seconds left in the round. Libranza, whose only loss came in 2017 challenging for a fringe world title, was in control from the start, but fought at a measured pace early. In round four, both fighters began to mix it up inside, where Libranza overwhelmed Maldonado with his right hand, administering a one-way beating until the official end at 2:58 in a scheduled eight-round bout.

Kicking off the marathon, 11-fight Pacquiao v. Thurman card at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, Filipino-born, California-based featherweight John Leo Dato (12-0-1, 8 KOs) scored two knockdowns en route to a fifth round knockout of Juan Antonio Lopez (13-7, 5 KOs). Dato, whose vocal contingent of travelling fans breathed life into the still empty arena, gave them plenty to cheer about, dropping Lopez early in round one with a short right hook to the chin. Lopez, a fringe prospect who started 10-0 before running into better competition, was game to fight, but couldn’t escape Dato’s right hand, getting hammered particularly in rounds three and four before a right to the body put him down for the count at 2:05 of round five in a scheduled six round bout.