Mauricio “Maestro” Herrera and hard-nosed veteran Cristian Favela headlined Thompson Boxing Promotions Friday night fight series “New Blood” at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, CA. The card also featured undefeated prospects Abraham Lopez and Jonathan Arellano in action packed fights that brought out the best in both young pugilists.

Mauricio Herrera outpointed perennial runner-up Cristian Favela to win their junior welterweight contest by unanimous decision. Herrera (17-1) worked the jab to dictate the action in the first. Favela (19-32-7) slept walked through the opener content to give the round away. Favela woke up between rounds and joined the fray though he didn’t do enough to earn the frame.

Favela pressured Herrera who ditched his jab in the third and paid. Herrera got back on the stick in the fourth and had an easier time in the stanza because of it. Favela upped his work rate once again and backed Herrera to a corner where he stayed most of round five. Herrera raced to center ring to start round six. With room to operate Herrera landed in combination while making Favela miss.

 Herrera was on his way to a clear cut seventh when Favela threw a hay maker that buckled Herrera’s knees. Herrera shrugged it off and regrouped immediately but was posterized nevertheless. The punch seemed to strengthen Herrera’s resolve who picked Favela apart over the final three minutes of the contest. The judges scored the bout 79-73 & 80-72 twice.
 

Abraham Lopez earned every penny of his paycheck in defeating Aaron Garcia by majority decision over eight featherweight rounds. Through two the fight was fairly even. Lopez (14-0) pumped an occasional jab and did his best to fight from the outside where his length and hand speed gave him the advantage.

Garcia (10-2-2) waded his way into Lopez where the shorter-armed fighter could fire his hooks at close range. The third started with a 30 second toe-to-toe exchange that was too close to call. When it was said and done Lopez was the fighter circling away from danger. The fourth ended as the third began – with a lengthy toe-to-toe exchange.

This time Lopez backed Garcia around the ring as he outworked his man from start to finish. The fifth and sixth were fought in a phone booth and both men were dialed in. The in-fighting carried over to the seventh and both men hammered away at the body. Both Lopez and Garcia were dead tired in the eighth but fought for all three minutes of the round.

The crowd appreciated their effort and rose to their feet to urge them to the bell. Judge Vince Delgado saw the contest even (76-76). Judge Danny Sandoval favored Lopez 78-74 and judge Pat Connely scored the contest 77-75 for Lopez.
 

Aron Martinez bested Albert Herrera over eight welterweight rounds to capture a brutal, back-and-forth affair by majority decision. The fighters traded hooks early in the second with Martinez out-landing Herrera 3-1. A longer, more brutal exchange occurred at the end of the round with Martinez again getting the upper hand. By the third, the continual clash of heads led to multiple cuts on Herrera as well as multiple warnings from referee Mendoza.

The third was a particularly ferocious round in a frenzied fight. At the midpoint of the scrap Herrera remained the aggressor but Martinez the sharper puncher. Another exchange of hooks erupted in the sixth. This time Martinez added an uppercut or two to cap the contest. At the conclusion of eight the fight ended as it started; with a vicious exchange that ran through to the bell.

Herrera had the faster hands but was beaten to the punch. Martinez was more compact with his punches as well as more varied with his attack. Judge Delgado scored the bout 77-75 for Herrera but was overruled by judges Sandoval and Connely who scored the bout 77-75 & 77-74 respectively.
 

Jonathan Arellano defeated Shawn Nichol by unanimous decision in a taunt, six round bantamweight battle. Arellano (8-0-1) landed a sharp counter hook to garner Nichol’s attention midway through the first. Arellano’s left hook emerged as the dominant punch of the early rounds but a Nichol uppercut was the best punch of the third.

While Arellano was landing one big punch at a time, Nichol was landing his punches in combination. Nichol (5-4) outworked Arellano in the fifth and landed several uppercut-right cross combinations. Arellano stormed back in the final round on the strength of his left hook. All three judges scored the contest 58-56 for Arellano.
 

Jhon Ortega stopped fellow junior welterweight Hector Garza in the first with a right to the body that put the Texan on his knees. Referee David Mendoza reached the count of ten with Garza (3-2) alert but on one knee.

Ortega (4-0-1) controlled the action while it lasted and was simply too quick for Garza who had trouble with the speed of the contest. The end came at 2:35 of the opener.