Rising super middleweight Diego Pacheco returned to action Saturday night, taking on Marcelo Coceres in a scheduled twelve rounder. The fight, which was the main event of a DAZN broadcast card, went down at the YouTube Theater in Inglewood, California. Both the 19-0 Pacheco and the 32-5-1 Coceres answered the opening bell behind high guards. The first was something of a feeling out process for both fighters. The second saw an aggressive Coceres largely play bull to Pacheco’s bullfighter.
By the third it was clear that Pacheco was fighting patiently, waiting for his chance to land and land well. Coceres was indeed an opponent who could push a fight. His skill set, however was rather crude. Still, the Argentine fighter had his moments and was certainly in the ring to win. There was an accidental head butt in the fourth. Other than that, Coceres continued to push forward while the largely defensive Pacheco merely jabbed at times.
The fifth round was a close one, with Pacheco landing some good punches, but Coceres was mostly in control. The same pattern continued in the sixth round. Pacheco may have been winning on the scorecards, but it didn't look like he was dominating. To make matters worse, he ate a left from Coceres at the end of the round. Pacheco showed some defensive skills in the seventh round, but he wasn't throwing many punches. The action was briefly halted due to an accidental headbutt in the middle of the round. Overall, Pacheco seemed hesitant and unsure.
However, everything changed in the eighth round when Pacheco suddenly came alive. He took the fight to his opponent and landed powerful combinations. And then, in the ninth round, Pacheco delivered a beautiful combination, ending with a devastating uppercut that knocked Coceres down and out. Coceres made it clear that he had been defeated by refusing to get up and choosing to be counted out.
