Diego Pacheco pounded his way to an 11th-round stoppage of Immanuwel Aleem at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.
Pacheco (26-0, 19 KOs) made a decision to take a step back in competition rather than charge into a title opportunity after having a less than stellar outing against Kevin Lele Sadjo. After going to a decision in three consecutive fights, Pacheco put together a bruising performance, landing 145 of 288 power punches (50%) to show why he's one of the top contenders at super middleweight.
"Everyone knows that I'm a knockout fighter," Pacheco said. "Ever since the amateurs, I've been putting guys out. To go to a decision in my last three fights just didn't sit right with me. I had to come out here and really make sure I put it on him and got him out of there."
With new trainer Buddy McGirt in his corner, Pacheco relied on his jab, landing 123 of 314 (39%) and utilized vicious body punching to soften up the durable but overmatched Aleem. By the middle rounds, Pacheco completely opened his toolbox and began blasting Aleem (22-5-3, 14 KOs) with uppercuts on the inside. Pacheco, 25, came close to a finish in Rounds 7 and 10 but took his foot off the accelerator and allowed Aleem -- who went the distance with Lester Martinez in his last fight -- to survive.
However, the punishment continued to pile up, and Pacheco sent Aleem to the canvas with a violent salvo of punches in Round 11. Referee Ray Corona could have stopped the fight at any time but allowed Allem to continue absorbing punishment before one last assault finally forced the stoppage in front of Pacheco's hometown fans.
The win puts Pacheco back in the driver's seat as he moves closer to a title opportunity. His promoter, Eddie Hearn, said he has plans to push for Pacheco to challenge for a championship by early next year.
"Is there a better fight than Diego Pacheco against Jaime Munguia for the WBA super middleweight title?" Hearn asked. "We'll be back around November, and we will be back here [at Dignity Health Sports Park]. We want to be back in this arena, and we want to be against another big name. Whether it's a world championship in November or in the spring 2027, you will see Diego fight for the world championship. And if we can get Jaime Munguia, we'll go and beat him, and then we'll face Canelo Alvarez as well."
While targeting a Canelo fight might be ambitious for Pacheco at this stage of his career, it's clear that the young fighter is trending in the right direction in a wide-open division.
In the co-main event, Andy Cruz bounced back from his first loss by running over Abraham Montoya for a third-round stoppage. Cruz (7-1, 4 KOs) was back in action after dropping a controversial majority decision to IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla in January. The Cuban amateur standout and 2020 Olympic gold medalist had little trouble wiping out Montoya (24-8-1, 14 KOs).
Cruz dropped Montoya with a right hand during an exchange at the end of Round 2 and wasted little time finishing the job with a barrage of punches that forced the stoppage at the :54 mark in the following round.