By Ryan Bivins

Miami, Florida - In the main event of the evening, Fredrick Lawson (24-0, 20 KOs) was upset by Kevin Bizier (24-2, 16 KOs) in an IBF welterweight title eliminator. Lawson’s biggest problem besides not matching Bizier for power or activity was his tendency to lean in over his front foot. This subsequently always kept Lawson in punching range whenever he tried to get off. After both fighters went toe-to-toe in the opening round, Lawson’s back was often toward the ropes as Bizier bossed the action around the ring.

Lawson was later hurt and dropped by a right hand in round 5 and was never able to turn the momentum around, although he found limited success in rounds 6 and 7. Lawson briefly came alive with flurries at the start of round 6 and incorporated some good body shots through the remainder. Then in round 7 Lawson used his footwork and counterpunching to do the best sticking and moving all fight.

Nonetheless, no matter what Lawson landed, Bizier walked through him and broke him down. Eventually Lawson's trainer Abel Sanchez stopped the fight at the conclusion of round 10 because he believed his fighter’s jaw was broken. The announced official time of the stoppage was 2:59, though common sense would dictate 3 full minutes. After the fight Bizier revealed that his plan was to “stay close” and “not let (Lawson) breathe.” It worked.

"I was surprised. He's not a puncher like his record would indicate. He hit me well, but never hurt me. I never felt tired or any pain. In the tenth round I was still very strong,” Bizier articulated. “He was starting the rounds strong but he would fade by the end of the round and that's when I would come on."

Bizier now becomes the mandatory challenger for IBF champion Kell Brook. Brook bested the only man to beat Bizier, Jo Jo Dan, with relative ease earlier this year.

However, Bizier looked better than ever against Lawson, so maybe he can give Brook a better fight than expected. Brook will probably be coming off a significant layoff due to his rib injury, after all. Whatever the case may be, the IBF is strict about mandatories. Expect to see Brook-Bizier next year.

In the NBCSN co-feature, Walter Castillo (26-3, 19 KOs) was very lucky to get a draw against Keita Obara (15-1, 14 KOs) in an IBF junior welterweight eliminator. Newly crowned IBF champion Eduard Troyanovsky probably wasn’t sweating a fight with either guy, but Obara arguably pitched a shutout from round 3 onward. Obara showed exceptional footwork and outpunched Castillo with better speed and combinations. Castillo exposed flaws in Obara’s defense but simply did not land enough or more devastatingly. The official scorecards read 115-113 for Obara and 114-114 (x2).

After both fighters made the 140 lb limit at the official weigh-in, NBC Sports unofficial scales showed that Castillo and Obara put on nearly 17 lbs by fight time. If the massive weight gains made anyone lethargic, the shorter Castillo took the brunt of the damage. Punch Stats recorded Obara outlanding Castillo 230 to 166.

After Castillo hurt Obara with right hands in round 2, his consistent offense was mostly limited to brief surges in rounds 3, 9 and 10. Round 1 also could have gone either way, making a 115-113 scorecard in favor of Obara somewhat defensible. As fate would have it, at least 1 of the official judges gave Castillo rounds 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10. Among those rounds, all 3 judges only agreed on round 2, giving credence to the iffy nature of the other rounds.

Unfortunately, those were not the only iffy rounds as far as judges Mark Streisand, John Rupert and Michael Ancona were concerned. Somehow all of them thought Castillo won rounds 4 and 7. Upon review, perhaps the NBCSN commentary swayed TV viewer judgement in round 4. Castillo was actually more accurate despite throwing with less conviction. As for round 7, both fighters landed about the same amount of punches, although Obara’s shots clearly did more damage, culminating in Castillo being staggered at the bell. But maybe the judges counted all of Castillo’s slaps on Obara’s shoulders.

Then there’s round 6, which judge Rupert also scored for Castillo. It’s not to say that Castillo didn’t have a few moments, but he definitely took a beating. He was bleeding from the mouth and generally looked ragged. He did not have the body language of a winner. Had judge Rupert given the round to Obara as Streisand and Ancona did, Obara would have won a majority decision.

Following the conclusion of the fight, Obara, who still thought he deserved to win, blamed himself for not securing the knockout.

"I landed good punches on him, but none were knockout punches. I knew to beat him here I would need to get the knockout and I did not get it,” said Obara.

Castillo, on the other hand, seemed content with the decision but blamed the vision in his right eye.

"The eye did affect my vision. As soon as I got hit, everything went blurry. My corner did a good job to get me through the 12 rounds. I gave it my all, but the eye did hamper the things I was trying to do,” claimed Castillo.

Referee Frank Santore Jr paused the fight at the start of round 11 to let the ringside doctor take a look at Castillo’s bleeding eye. Santore then had the doctor check out Castillo’s bleeding left ear at the start of round 12. By no coincidence Obara dominated the final 2 rounds, probably saving himself from a very controversial defeat. Both fighters said they were open to a rematch. IBF junior welterweight champion Eduard Troyanovsky probably won’t have to face either any time soon.