Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images
Chris Avila is proving to be a better boxer than MMA fighter.
The 30-year-old Stockton native dominated Jeremy Stephens to win a one-sided unanimous decision on Saturday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. The six-round boxing matchup between UFC veterans took place on the pay-per-view card of Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz, with Avila (4-1) claiming scorecards of 59-55, 59-55, and 60-54 over Stephens (0-1-1) to continue his surprising run of success in the squared circle.
A longtime teammate of Diaz, Avila overwhelmed and confounded Stephens with a high-volume punching attack, out-landing his foe by a 141-81 margin. Avila set the tone early by catching Stephens with a big right hand off the opening bell, then refused to let up from there, using a consistent stream of combination punching to keep Stephens off rhythm.
Avila did his best work in the fourth round, staggering Stephens with a barrage of right hands to the head and body, then further frustrating his 37-year-old opponent with repeated taunts in a Diaz-esque fashion. With no answer for Avila’s movement and volume, Stephens instead resorted to loading up on single shots that Avila easily slipped.
Avila has now won four consecutive pro boxing appearances since returning to the sport on the Paul vs. Woodley 2 card in December 2021.
Stephens remains winless as a professional boxer after fighting to a majority draw against UFC Hall of Famer Jose Aldo in his debut this past April.
