It’s not always pretty, but Chris Avila just keeps finding ways to win in the boxing ring.
This time around, Avila took out former UFC champion Anthony Pettis by feeding him a steady diet of punches and keeping the pressure on him for all six rounds. When it was over, the judges scored the fight 58-56, 59-55, and 59-55, with Avila getting the nod for his sixth consecutive win in the boxing ring.
“That’s for them to figure it out,” Avila said about his style that continues to give opponents problems. “I knew what I was going to do. I knew I was going to come out and outbox him.”
In his second pro bout as a boxer, Pettis focused on staying busier when the fight began and showcasing quick feet as he moved around the outside before leaping inside for his combinations. That forced Avila to chase him around the ring, with Avila looking to close the distance and draw Pettis into a slugfest.
While Avila has been active and winning lately, he seemed resigned to throwing a lot of haymakers as Pettis actually set up his punches with a little more technical prowess in the early going. Still, Avila connected with power punches, including a stiff left hook toward the end of the second round that twisted Pettis’ head around.
The early activity from Pettis seemed to come back to haunt him as each round passed and Avila began to consistently land an overhand right that kept catching Pettis off guard. He wasn’t doing a ton of damage, but Avila kept finding a home for that same punch.
In the classic style of his mentor Nate Diaz, Avila relied on his output and relentless pressure, with Pettis getting stuck in the mud during many of the exchanges. Avila seemed content to just chip away at Pettis, round after round, because the strategy continued to work.
No one would mistake it for high-level boxing, but Avila consistently connected with more punches while Pettis began to slow down as the fight wore on. The sold-out crowd at the Honda Center also grew a little restless, which is usually when Avila and Pettis would pick up the pace.
As time ticked away in the final round, Avila started sticking his jab in Pettis’ face as the former UFC lightweight champion kept throwing wild hooks, perhaps looking for the knockout to avoid the judges’ scorecards. The finish didn’t come, with Avila still tossing out combinations and staying in pursuit of Pettis until the final bell rang.
While it was far from memorable battle, Avila did what he needed to do to take out another big-name opponent and keep his winning streak alive. Avila was, at best, a middle of the road MMA fighter, but he’s really seemed to find his groove in boxing, especially if he can keep taking out ex-UFC athletes and social influencers as his stock-in-trade.