Bektemir “Bek” Melikuziev walked away with the win on May 30, when he faced Darius Fulghum at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. Battling it out in the main event, the pair squared off in a WBA super middleweight title eliminator.
The scheduled 12-round bout went the full distance and produced fireworks. Melikuziev (16-1, 10 KOs) defeated Fulghum (14-1, 12 KOs) by unanimous decision with all three judges scoring the fight 114-112.
On his way to victory, once-beaten contender from Uzbekistan Melikuziev suffered a cut near his left eye from a punch in the fourth round, was deducted a point for holding in the seventh, and dropped Fulghum of El Paso, TX with a left hand in the 12th round.
“We faced a lot of adversity during this camp, so this victory means a lot more – especially with my baby on the way,” Melikuziev said. “I want to thank Golden Boy, Oscar De La Hoya, and the Diaz Training Camp for the incredible support. I will face anyone and everyone. I’m not scared to face the likes of Caleb Plant or any of the top guys at super middleweight.”
On Melikuziev vs Fulghum undercard
In the co-main event, Eric Priest (16-0, 8 KOs) of Wichita Falls, TX defeated Luis Arias (22-5-1, 11 KOs) of Milwaukee, WI by unanimous decision at middleweight. After 10 rounds, the judges scored the fight 99-90, 99-90, and 96-93. Arias was deducted a point in the second round for punching on the break.
Among other Melikuziev vs Fulghum results, Joshua Edwards (2-0, 2 KOs) of Houston, TX dropped and stopped Alexander Rhodes (2-2, 1 KO) of West Columbia, SC in the first round at heavyweight. The official time was 2:08.
In another heavyweight matchup, Federico Pacheco Jr. (9-0, 6 KOs) of Los Angeles defeated Calvin Barnett (5-3, 2 KOs) of Tulsa, OK by unanimous decision. After six rounds, all three judges scored it 58-55.
In the telecast opener, Cayden Griffiths (5-0, 5 KOs) of Harrisburg, PA stopped Edgar Gutierrez (3-3, 2 KOs) of Yuma, AZ in the fourth round at welterweight. The time was 1:15.
On Melikuziev vs Fulghum prelims
Among the prelims, Grant Flores (10-0, 8 KOs) of Thermal, CA eliminated Brandon Diaz-Campos (6-1, 6 KOs) of Hastings, NE in the fifth round at super welterweight. The time was 2:58.
Mexico’s Santiago Dominguez (28-1, 21 KOs) stopped Filipino John Vincent Moralde (27-6, 16 KOs) in the first round at welterweight. The time was 2:52.
Daniel Garcia (12-0, 9 KOs) of Denver, CO scored a unanimous decision over Colombia’s George Camilo Rodriguez Pardo (10-4, 8 KOs) at lightweight. After eight rounds, all three scores were 80-72.