Vito Gasparyan (14-3-5) displayed one of the sturdiest chins in recent memory as he ate dozens of clean, hard shots throughout the contest. On top of that, he also absorbed many a punch to the groin. Vargas pummeled Gasparyan’s body but too often he strayed below the belt and had a point taken away in the eighth round.
Vargas utilized solid movement to coincide with his trademark relentless attack, but he simply couldn’t budge the resilient Armenian until a vicious uppercut broke through in the ninth. The punch wobbled Gasparyan, but he was able to hang on until the frame ended and, in essence, until the final bell.
Even with the penalty, Vargas (21-0) cleaned up the slate with a near shutout performance as the three judges favored him with scores of 98-91 (twice) and 98-90.