A makeshift main event turned into to one of the most enjoyable fights of the year.

In the end, it was Vladimir Hernandez who made the most of the last-minute opportunity in a valiant points win over Raul Garcia. Scores were 94-93, 95-92 and 96-91 for Hernandez in their ProBox TV headliner Wednesday from ProBox TV Events Center in Plant City, Florida.

The junior middleweight bout was first put together as the evening’s chief support. It was elevated to the top slot when Lester Martinez (18-0, 15 knockouts) was unable to make it to fight night. The Ring’s No. 8-rated super middleweight fell ill after Tuesday’s weigh-in. He was forced to withdraw from his clash versus Joeshon James (9-0-2, 5 KOs) as a result.

James was left with a ringside view for the night but was at least provided with a worthy substitute.

The terrific ten-round affair began as a showcase performance for Dominican Republic’s Garcia (13-2-1, 11 KOs). The 25-year-old from Santo Domingo jumped out to a strong start and even had Hernandez on the canvas in round three. Garcia’s left hook was dialed in as he built up an early lead.

True to his career scouting report, Hernandez refused to fade away.

The 35-year-old southpaw from Stockton, California took control of the fight in the fight. Garcia was briefly stunned by a shot to the temple. A severely delayed reaction saw him fall to the canvas, though it could have been called a slip. Referee Michael DeJesus ruled him down by contact and issued a count.

Garcia came back in the middle rounds but struggled to keep Hernandez (16-6, 7 KOs) at bay. It cost him in a big way in round eight.

Hernandez connected with a left, right hook left hand combination to send Garcia to the canvas late in the eighth.

The momentum shift didn’t last long. Garcia rose to his feet and stormed back by round’s end.

The final two rounds saw Hernandez seal his hard fought win.

Three months after a Knockout of the Year-worthy victory over Guido Schramm in this very venue, Hernandez couldn’t repeat the ending here. It didn’t come from a lack of trying. Garcia was unable to guard against Hernandez’s clean shots upstairs. He responded with his left hook but was outgunned down the stretch in an otherwise winnable fight.

Hernandez has now won two straight and six of his last eight starts. Two of the wins during that period came versus former unified 154-pound titlist Julian Williams and unbeaten Lorenzo Simpson. His losses over that stretch were to then-unbeaten talents Jesus Ramos and Troy Isley.

Garcia is now just 1-2-1 in his last four starts. He dropped a split decision to Leonardo Ruiz last Aug. 23 at this location.

Also on the show, Jaycob Gomez (11-0-1, 7 KOs) remained perfect with a second-round stoppage of Jerry Perez (14-5-1, 11 KOs). Their lightweight co-feature was stopped in between rounds when Perez’s corner opted to not have him come out prior to the start of the third.

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