Bruce Carrington W8 Brayan De Gracia... Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington, 125.4 lbs., from the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, NY, halted the experienced Brayan De Gracia, 125 lbs., of David, Panama, in round eight of Saturday’s ESPN co-feature at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. While De Gracia was aggressive and showed a willingness to trade early on, Carrington looked for openings to counter. Carrington did get caught a few times but was never deterred. A series of overhand rights from Carrington wobbled then dropped De Gracia in round five. By the midway point, De Gracia’s face was swelling and his nose bloodied. Carrington also paid attention to his foe’s midsection, digging hooks downstairs. A right uppercut-right hook combination sent De Gracia to the canvas for a second time at the end of round seven. A barrage of punches with De Gracia against the ropes in the eighth stanza forced the referee to end the contest at the 2:56 mark. Carrington improved to 12-0 (8 KOs). Before turning pro in 2021, Carrington accumulated a stellar amateur record of 255-31. De Gracia left the Garden at 29-4-1 (25 KOs). 

“There are some things I could’ve done more. There are some things I could’ve done better on the defensive end. He’s a tough opponent, and I’m super happy that Brayan came in and took the fight on last-minute notice," Carrington said afterwards. "He came to fight. He’s really strong. His knockout ratio shows the power is there, but you know me, I have a lot of experience and know how to get around that, break my opponent down, and do what I do. And that’s how we got the victory.”

Tiger Johnson W8 Tarik Zaina,... Highlighting the Xander Zayas-Patrick Teixeira undercard from the Theater at Madison Square Garden, Olympian Delante “Tiger” Johnson, 141.2 lbs., of Cleveland, OH, improved to 13-0 (6 KOs) with an eight-round unanimous decision win against Moroccan Tarik Zaina, 142.6 lbs., of Tijuana, Mexico. Expertly evading much of Zaina’s offense with subtle feints, head movement and angles, Johnson often hit his target with counter straight right hands and left hooks. The scorecards read 79-73, 78-74, and 77-75, all for the talented Johnson, who finished his amateur campaign with a record of 118-17. Zaina ended the night with a record of 13-2-1 (8 KOs). 

Andy Dominguez W8 Christopher Rios... With both flyweights, Andy Dominguez and Christopher Rios coming off of losses, Dominguez emerged with the rebound win on Saturday night. It was a thrilling evenly-matched encounter, with Dominguez, 111.8 lbs., and Rios, 111.8 lbs., standing shoulder-to-shoulder and trading leather for much of the bout. Dominguez, of Las Vegas, NV, did his best when he took a half-step back, giving himself room to effectively land his flashy combinations. Rios, of Los Angeles, CA, found success with his left hook upstairs, particularly in round two. Overall, Dominguez proved to be the faster, more accurate puncher. Scorecards read 76-76, 78-74, and 77-75, for Dominguez, now 11-1 (6 KOs), via majority decision. Suffering his second consecutive loss, Rios dropped to 10-2 (7 KOs).