Jarrett Hurd secured the crucial knockdown necessary to defeat Erislandy Lara with a mere 37 seconds remaining in their fiercely contested 154-pound title unification bout on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
This knockdown propelled Hurd to a narrow 114-113 lead on the scorecards of judges Glenn Feldman and Dave Morretti, resulting in a split-decision victory over the skilled Cuban southpaw. Judge Burt Clements scored the 12-round fight in favor of Lara, 114-113.
Had Hurd not landed his left hook late in the 12th round, the match would have ended in a majority draw. Hurd's relentless pressure, coupled with Lara's altered approach possibly influenced by his age of 34, led to a shift in Lara's usual tactics throughout the fight. They frequently engaged in close-quarters combat, with Lara displaying less movement than usual, while the 5-foot-9 Lara consistently found success with his left hand despite the 6-foot-1 Hurd's forward momentum.
Ultimately, two of the three judges favored Hurd's aggressive approach and effectiveness on the inside against Lara, who endured swelling and a cut around his right eye.
Hurd (22-0, 15 KOs) captured the WBA and IBO super welterweight titles from Lara (25-3-2, 14 KOs) and defended his IBF junior middleweight title in a bout televised by Showtime from The Joint inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. The 27-year-old Hurd, hailing from Accokeek, Maryland, handed Lara the third narrow loss of his nine-year professional career. Prior to this match, Lara had only suffered a contentious majority decision defeat to Paul Williams in July 2011 and a disputable split decision loss to Canelo Alvarez in July 2014.
In the 12th round, Hurd unleashed a barrage of overhand rights and right uppercuts that gradually wore down Lara. He ultimately floored Lara with a left hook, sending him to his gloves and knees with just 37 seconds left in the fight. Although Lara appeared to buy himself some time to recover by not immediately responding to referee Kenny Bayless' commands upon rising, he managed to endure until the final bell once the action resumed.
Hurd seemingly rocked Lara with a right hand in the waning moments of the 11th round, leaving Lara momentarily stunned near the ropes.
The 10th round concluded with intense exchanges, with both Lara and Hurd landing significant shots-Lara predominantly with his left hand and Hurd with his right.
Throughout the ninth round, Lara and Hurd engaged in close-quarters combat, with Hurd landing body and head shots while Lara countered with left hands.
In the eighth round, Hurd snapped Lara's head back with a right uppercut, followed by an overhand right after backing Lara into a corner.
A hard right hand from Hurd landed just before the seventh round ended, though Lara absorbed the shot well and retaliated with combinations earlier in the round.
In the sixth round, Lara caught Hurd with a powerful left uppercut, momentarily awakening Hurd, who continued to press forward to assert his resilience.
Despite Hurd's attempts to target Lara's body in the fifth round, Lara effectively defended against most of the attacks with his elbows. Hurd struggled to land significant punches after switching to a southpaw stance, though Lara managed to counter with a left hand.
Hurd maintained pressure throughout the fourth round, willingly absorbing left hands to land body shots on Lara and connecting with a solid right hand towards the end.
During the third round, Lara stayed close to Hurd, allowing him to land left hands effectively. However, Hurd found success with a hard, short counter right hand.
In the second round, Lara stood his ground and landed several left hands as Hurd advanced, while Hurd retaliated with a short right hand towards the end of the round.
Lara started the bout strongly in the first round, landing numerous left hands as Hurd pressed forward.
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