David Stevens preserved his unbeaten record but failed to replicate the magic produced from his previous outing.
Three months after scoring a literal last-second knockout, the unbeaten Stevens was forced to overcome a flash knockdown to outpoint faded former title challenger Marco Antonio Periban, Judges Javier Alvarez (78-73), Jesse Reyes (78-73) and David Iacobucci (77-74) all scored for Stevens in the DAZN-televised opener Saturday evening at College Park Center at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Stevens was three months removed from a dramatic eighth-round knockout of Sean Hemphill. Their January 20 ShoBox main event saw Stevenson build a lead on all three scorecards heading into the eighth and final round, when he knocked out Hemphill with just two seconds left on the clock.
The win was his third straight knockout and it was clear that Stevens hoped to extend that streak. He exploited Periban’s leaky defense in the opening round, as he landed his right hand over the top of Periban’s low guard. The unbeaten super middleweight was also effective with his left hook, though Periban was able to land to the body.
Mexico City’s Periban adjusted in round two, both defensively and his ability to go punch for punch with Stevens. The two traded left hooks and Periban—a 38-year-old from Mexico City—also played enough defense to avoid getting caught with more than one punch at a time. Stevens kept his cool and did not force the action though he traded a bit too much to the liking of famed trainer Ronnie Shields.
Those concerns were realized late in round three. Stevens forced the action but also ate a series of straight right hands by Periban late in the round. Stevens connected with a left hook but a subsequent effort to apply pressure led to a cupping right hand by Periban that was ruled as a clean punch which forced the 22-year-old Reading, Pennsylvania native to the canvas inside the final 20 seconds.
Stevens reclaimed the lead in round four, though was more deliberate in his attack. Periban was urged by his corner to offer more movement to fatigue the younger Stevens. It merely minimized the incoming though it also came at the expense of Periban throwing fewer punches in return.
Both boxes picked up the pace considerably in round six. Stevens landed a left hook to the body following a double jab. Periban spent most of the round fighting in reverse before he bit down and traded with the younger Stevens late in the round. A two-way exchange ensued, which saw Periban land a left hook and right hand upstairs while Stevens threw and landed the straighter shots.
Perbian offered a spirited efforts in the final two rounds. The sense in his corner that Stevens was merely fighting for a knockout, somewhat reflected in the instructions from a frustrated Shields. Stevens didn’t quite adjust though he boxed well enough to avoid an upset defeat.
Periban fell to 26-7-1 (17KOs) with his second straight defeat and fourth in his last five fights spready out over a six-year span.
Stevens is now 13-0 (9KOs), though the distance fight ended a three-fight knockout run.
Headlining the show, unbeaten lightweight contender William Zepeda (27-0, 23KOs) faces Panama’s Jaime Arboleda (19-2, 14KOs) in a scheduled twelve-round regional title fight.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox