Arnold Barboza Jr., a contender for the junior welterweight division, made the most of his main event debut after waiting nearly ten years as a professional.

At the Pechanga Resort Casino on Friday night, Barboza (27 to 0, 10 KOs), of South El Monte, California, wore out Danielito Zorrilla to win a 10-round unanimous decision. At 140 pounds, he was ranked No. 8 by the WBO, and he won by scores of 98 to 92 and 97 to 93 twice.

After an 11-month absence, Barboza returned in fine form, wearing down Zorrilla with repeated body attacks and well-placed right hands. In the tenth round, Zorrilla (16 to 1, 12 KOs), who was severely underdog on the cards, summoned one more effort. He struck Barboza with a clean right hand, sending the Southern California standout into a moment of extreme anxiety. Barboza kept his composure and prevailed for his 27th victory.

Barboza said, “I was a little rusty. It’s been a while. I’m [not] going to be inactive like that no more, man. I’m going to be fighting constantly.

“I was more off balance {in the 10th round}. I was right there. Once you saw me off balance, I was right back to my thing. Shout out to my conditioning. My conditioning was on point.

“My manager knows, if we can’t get a title shot, you know who it is. We want Teofimo. It’s either a title shot or him.”

Muratalla Dominates Valtierra

Raymond “Danger” Muratalla, a lightweight sensation (15 to 0, 12 KOs), defeated Jair Valtierra (16 to 2, 8 KOs) throughout the course of eight rounds by identical scores of 80 to 71. In the fourth, Californian Muratalla, from Fontana, felled Valtierra with a left hook.

Despite landing 133 power punches to 20 for Valtierra, Muratalla’s nine-bout winning streak came to an end.

In the eighth round, Muratalla pushed for the knockout, but the tenacious Valtierra came back and made it to the final chimes.

“I did OK. I felt like I was a little bit sloppy. I could’ve done a lot better. There are better days to come,” Muratalla said. “I just want to stay active, keep fighting, and whatever opponents they bring to me, they bring to me. I just want to get to the top, and I’m going to keep fighting and fighting.”

Torrez Jr. Stops Zavala Jr. in 58 Seconds

In just 58 seconds of the first round, heavyweight U.S. Olympic silver medalist Richard Torrez Jr. (2 to 0, 2 KOs) stopped Roberto Zavala Jr. (2 to 2 to 1, 2 KOs). Torrez launched a combination that caused Eddie Hernandez Sr. to brush it off as he advanced and backed Zavala Jr. into the blue corner.

On August 27, Torrez Jr. made a comeback in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as part of the Jose Pedraza-Richard Commey main event’s ESPN-televised undercard.

Torrez Jr. said, “I want to thank Top Rank for keeping me active and giving me the platform to showcase my talents. Every fight is a learning experience, and I can’t wait until August 27 in Tulsa.”

In other results:

Heavyweight: Bernardo Marquez (14 to 5 to 1, 10 KOs) was defeated by Stephan Shaw (17 to 0, 13 KOs) in 2:35. Marquez was defeated three times in less than three minutes by “Big Shot” Shaw, who lived up to his reputation. With a chopping right hand that sent Marquez to the canvas, St. Louis native Shaw put an end to the evening. Since agreeing to a co-promotional agreement with Top Rank, Shaw is 2 to 0 in 2022.

Junior Featherweight: Pedro Salome (3 to 0 to 1, 1 KO) was defeated by Floyd Diaz (6 to 0, 2 KOs) in 1:17. After going 5-0 four weeks prior, Diaz made a powerful comeback. Following a close first round, Diaz flipped the script and felled Salome with an overhand right in the third. After knocking Salome out with a three-punch combination, referee Daniel Sandoval declared the fight over.

Welterweight: Jorge Marron Jr. loses to Adrian Yung (28 to 7 to 3, 22 KOs) (20 to 3 to 2, 7 KOs). Scores: 57 to 57 2x and 59 to 55 Yung. The opponent who showed up on short notice did not phase Yung, who was initially scheduled to face Muratalla. Marron, a San Diego native, brought a huge crowd of supporters but ended up drawing for the second week in a row.

Featherweight: Victor Saravia (UD 4) Austin Brooks (7 to 0, 2 KOs). (1 to 3, 1 KO). Scores: 3x 40-36.