Martirosyan stays busy with one-sided decision over Gutierrez

Junior middleweight contender Vanes Martirosyan stayed busy with a one-sided 10-round decision over Richard Gutierrez in Thackerville, Okla., on Saturday.

Martirosyan (31-0, 19 knockouts), who beat the 34-year-old veteran by scores of 100-90 (twice) and 99-91, is in line to get an eventual shot at WBC 154-pound beltholder Saul Alvarez. The 25-year-old boxer-puncher from Glendale, Calif., is rated No. 2 by the WBC, behind Alfredo Angulo.

If Martirosyan stays unbeaten he might take on one of the two unbeaten Mexican fighters in a high-profile bout next year. Gutierrez, who has now lost seven of his last 10 bouts dating back to a TKO loss to Angulo in 2008, was not going to threaten the young Armenian-American’s future prospects.

The former welterweight contender could not deal with Martirosyan’s superior speed, consistent jab, lateral movement and accurate combinations.

Martirosyan easily out-maneuvered Gutierrez while controlling the Miami-based Colombian with his jab in the early rounds of the Top Rank Live! main event on Fox Deportes.

Martirosyan planted his feet more and mixed his punches up during the middle rounds, discouraging the veteran from advancing forward. THE RING’s No. 4-rated junior middleweight took his foot off the gas pedal a little bit in final two rounds.

And why not? He had the fight in the bag. Why risk an accidental head butt or hand injury? Martirosyan knows he must remain healthy. He’s got a big 2012 ahead of him.

In the co-featured bout of the broadcast, Casey Ramos got up from a knockdown to out-work Joselito Collado in a back-and-forth eight-round slugfest between to gutsy undefeated junior lightweight prospects.

Ramos (15-0, 4 KOs), who went down from a short hook early in the third round, won by scores of 78-74, 78-73 and 77-74. The 22-year-old from Austin, Texas, seemed to land the harder punches throughout the see-saw battle. His right eye was cut and swollen shut by the end of the fight.

Collado (12-1, 3 KOs), a 29-year-old Dominican from Queens, N.Y., finished the fight with a swollen-shut left eye.

Photos by Chris Farina-Top Rank.