Zuffa Boxing 05 offered a surprising upset win, solid performances from two veteran fan favorites, and a win for a fighter on the rise, along with knockouts sprinkled throughout the evening at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
Andres Cortes Cruises To Win
In the main event, lightweight Andres Cortes of Las Vegas (25-0, 13 KOs) put together a solid decision victory in his hometown over Dominican contender Eridson Garcia (23-2, 14 KOs). Scores were 97-92, 96-93, and 95.94.
Cortes fought a smart, competent fight, not giving Garcia any early opportunities and working well from a distance. The frustrated Garcia was warned for holding by referee Thomas Taylor, who finally hit him with a point deduction in round four.
With Garcia warned and cautious, Cortes took the opportunity to close the distance and fight on the inside with increasing confidence. Cortes, perhaps best known for a controversial win over Abraham Nova, is now in a position to fight the other Zuffa lightweight talents and said he’s willing to take any of them on.
Mark Magsayo Sharp in Lightweight Debut
In the co-main event, former featherweight world champion Mark Magsayo of the Philippines (29-2, 19 KOs) enjoyed a successful lightweight debut with a flashy fifth-round TKO finish of Feargal McCrory, an Irish boxer based in New York (17-2, 9 KOs), delighted Filipino fans at the APEX.
Magsayo showed no hesitation going right at McCrory early, scoring with hard right hands in the first round. McCrory was game, but he struggled to connect with anything meaningful early, as Magsayo was too skilled and too experienced.
Magsayo came close to stopping McCrory late in the fourth with a series of clean, hard shots that rocked him but didn’t drop him.
McCrory’s corner warned him that they would pull him out of the fight if he continued to take damage. It only took 21 seconds for trainer Colin Morgan to pull McCrory out as Magsayo lit him up.
WHAT A WAY TO END ROUND 4 😤
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— Zuffa_Boxing (@Zuffa_Boxing) April 6, 2026
Shocking Loss For Meriwether
In the upset of the evening, Tony Hirsch Jr of Oakland (8-0-2, 4 KOs) hung the first loss on highly regarded prospect Robert Meriwether III of Las Vegas (10-1 KOs) with a majority decision win over eight rounds in the lightweight division. Scores were 78-74 and 76-75, with one card a 76-76 draw.
It was a high-energy fight, with Hirsch Jr. pushing the pace and landing effective body shots, working behind an excellent jab. Meriwether performed best from range, where he could put his shots together.
As the two fighters began moving in closer, it came down as many close fights do to a battle of will to avoid suffering a first loss. As both traded heavy combinations on the inside, Hirsch’s work was more effective.
After the sixth round, Meriwether’s father and trainer, Robert Meriwether Sr., urged his son to finish the fight. But despite pushing hard to find a fight-changing shot, he couldn’t break the relentless Hirsch.
Hovhannisyan Defeats Baez In Majority Decision
Longtime Southern California fan favorite Azat “Crazy A” Hovhannisyan (23-6, 17 KOs) won as he always does it, the hard way. In his first Zuffa appearance, “Crazy A” won a majority decision over Eduardo Baez of Mexico (25-8-2, 10 KOs) at featherweight.
Hovhannisyan appeared to injure his left arm in the first round, and Baez tried to capitalize by unloading early. Hovhannisyan adapted to favor his right hand, and he managed to stay competitive.
In Round 5, Hovhannisyan turned up the heat as he drew Baez in, countering with big right hands. And it was surprisingly successful for Hovhannisyan while Baez’s work became increasingly scrappy.
Despite fighting almost with one arm for much of the fight, Hovhannisyan battled through to the final round to claim the majority decision verdict, exhaling with relief as he heard his winning scores.
Additional Undercard Results
Featherweight Alexis De La Cerda scored an exciting with a huge one-shot knockout in the third round of Ervin Fuller III. It gave De La Cerda the ninth win and fifth knockout of his undefeated career, and a statement win on his Zuffa Boxing debut.
Undefeated Jorge Maravillo of Los Angeles got past a sluggish start to stop Elias Diaz of San Diego in the fifth round of their welterweight bout. While Diaz got off to a stronger start, winning the first four rounds, one punch can change things quickly.
In the fifth round, Maravillo’s corner told him to let his hands go. He did exactly that as he rocked Diaz with a huge right hand, forcing the San Diego native to hold.
Maravillo kept up the pressure and eventually overwhelmed Diaz, who went to the canvas and took an eight-count. Diaz beat the count, but Maravillo closed in and unloaded more power shots, with referee Thomas Taylor stepping in to wave off the fight.
As Zuffa Boxing color commentator and pound-for-pound great Andre Ward said, “It ain’t how you start. It’s how you finish.”
In the opening bout, Colorado Springs featherweight Troy Nash added to his Zuffa Boxing debut win with a second victory by majority decision verdict over Bryan “Pretty Boy” Rodriguez.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.