Sam Goodman cruised past Mexico’s Cesar Vaca to resume his charge towards a world title shot, putting a difficult period behind him in the process.
The 26-year-old Aussie remained undefeated with a unanimous-decision victory (99-92, 99-91, 100-90) over Vaca at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion.
In his first outing since a cut above his left eye nixed a fight with Naoya Inoue for the undisputed titles, Goodman looked comfortable through the opening five rounds, settling into a rhythm and out-working Vaca who was happy to fight on the back foot and look for counters.
MORE: Why Harry Garside rejected undercard fighter’s $100,000 challenge
Sensing he was well down on the cards, Vaca stepped things up in the eighth round but Goodman had the answers, although a head clash late in the ninth split him above his right eye, no doubt making for some nervous moments in the corner.
While the fight didn’t reach any great heights for action, Goodman, now 20-0, will be pleased to put the last six months behind him and get through with his troublesome eyebrow intact.
After the fight, an emotional Goodman reflected on the relief of victory.
"I tried to get through it without any cuts, but it's not my style this year," Goodman said.
"The last six months of my life has been wild.
"But my team, I wouldn't have got through it without you.
"A lot of work, a lot of support. It was tough, but iv'e got all them behind me.
"I don't know what's next, a couple of stitches, but I'll be back in the gym and then we'll go."
In the chief support, Harry Garside improved to 4-0 after a three-year absence from the professional boxing ring, having returned to the amateurs ahead of the Paris Olympics.
Garside’s opponent, Queensland’s Charlie Bell, was plenty game but outclassed from the outset.
A cut above Garside’s eye caused by a head clash didn’t seem to bother him too much as repeatedly scored with sharp shots at range before slipping away from Bell’s counters.
In the end, the bout was waved off before the sixth and final round.
Earlier, Stevan Ivic retained the Australian heavyweight title with a thrilling unanimous-decision victory (96-93x2, 96-94) over Toese Vousiutu.
In a fight of the year contender, Ivic looked to have done enough to get his man out of there in the sixth before Vousiutu rallied and dominated the next two rounds, with both fighters throwing and landing bombs right to the final bell.
Here’s how it all went down:
Sam Goodman vs. Cesar Vaca live updates and highlights
Garside resumes pro career with stoppage win
Harry Garside returned to the pro ranks with a stoppage victory over a game but outclassed Charlie Bell, with the referee calling it off before the sixth and final round.
A head clash in the first round caused a cut on each fighter's left eye, although it didn't seem to impair them too much.
Garside was at his elusive and sharp best, popping away at range and avoiding any of the trouble coming back his way to improve to 4-0 with 3 KOs.
Ivic retains title after epic heavyweight brawl
Stevan Ivic retained the Australian heavyweight title with a unanimous-decision victory (96-93x2, 96-94) over Toese Vousiutu in a fight of the year contender.
After a slow opening few rounds, the fight steadily grew in intensity before Ivic looked to have Vousiutu on the verge of being stopped in the sixth.
Vousiutu went down but beat the count after a barrage of heavy shots.
The tables then turned in the seventh, with Vousiutu landing bomb after bomb in the seventh and eighth.
The momentum swung several more times over the last two rounds as they traded power punches right to the final bell, with eventually getting the nod on the cards.
Mounir Fathi scores body-shot KO
A right hook on the beltline in the third round was enough to get the durable Wade Ryan out of there, seeing Mounir Fathi claim the biggest win of his career.
Ryan couldn't beat the count after taking a knee, later revealing that could be the end of his 36-fight professional career.
Fathi, now 9-1, called out Michael Zerafa following the win.
Charlie Kazzi takes out entertaining scrap
The pay-per-view portion of the card kicked off with an engaging eight-round battle between Charlie Kazzi and Patrick Vella.
In an all-action affair, Vella played up to the crowd while Kazzi got busy on the inside and eventually took out a unanimous decision victory (79-73 x2, 77-75).
Jason Fawcett gets the nod over Alex Lual
On the final prelim bout, Jason Fawcett improved to 10-2 with a hard-fought majority-decision win (59-55, 58-56, 57-57) over Alex Lual.
Both guys had moments of success but Fawcett landed the more damaging shots more often.
Jasmine Parr returns with a bang
In her first fight since the maiden loss of her career against Shannon O'Connell in December, Jasmine Parr was far too good for Thailand's Jittamat Phomta.
Parr repeatedly stung Phomta from the opening bell and quickly had her opponent shelling up against the ropes and on the way to a finish in just over a minute.
Dharringarra Trewhella moves to 5-0
Dharringarra Trewhella made it three wins out of three for Sydney fighters on the card with a third-round stoppage of Kaliova Tahikia.
Incredibly, referee John Cauchi appeared to miss knockdowns from both fighters before Trewhella got on top and secured the finish of an exhausted Tahikia.
Salvatore Gattuso begins pro career in style
A first-round body shot was enough to earn Salvatore Gattuso a victory on his professional debut over Nikesh Prasad.
Tyrell Adams records another win
Western Sydney teenager Tyrell Adams kicked off his professional career with a composed performance on the way to a unanimous decision (40-36 x3) win over Papua New Guinea's Roy Gavera in the non-televised opener.
Goodman vs. Vaca fight card
- Sam Goodman vs. Cesar Vaca Espinoza; super bantamweight
- Harry Garside vs. Charlie Bell; lightweight
- Stevan Ivic vs. Toese Vousiutu for the Australian heavyweight title
- Mounir Fathi vs. Wade Ryan; super welterweight
- Charlie Kazzi vs. Patrick Vella; lightweight
- Jason Fawcett vs. Alex Lual; super lightweight
- Dharringarra Trewhella vs. Kaliova Tahikia; welterweight
- Jasmine Parr vs. Jittamat Phomta; super flyweight
- Salvatore Gattuso vs. Nikesh Prasad; cruiserweight
- Tyrell Adams vs. Roy Gavera; super featherweight
Goodman vs. Vaca start time
The action goes down on Wednesday, May 14.
The first fight of the evening is due to begin at 5pm AEST, before the broadcast kicks off at 5:30pm.
From 7pm, the broadcast will switch to pay-per-view, with Goodman and Vaca due in the ring some time around 10pm, depending on the length of the earlier fights.
How to watch Goodman vs. Vaca: TV channel, live stream
Fans wishing to watch the prelim action can tune into Fox Sports 5 (Ch. 505) from 5:30pm AEST, while the pay-per-view, which can be purchased for $49.95, begins on Main Event at 7pm.
For the live stream, Kayo has you covered for the prelims, while fans can also purchase the PPV through the platform.
Click here to purchase Goodman vs. Vaca on Kayo PPV