ARLINGTON, Texas – Featherweight contender Joseph Diaz Jr. stopped Andrew Cancio at 2:27 of Round 9 on the Canelo Alvarez-Liam Smith card Saturday at AT&T Stadium.

Cancio (17-4-2, 13 knockouts) fought aggressively but it was Diaz, the slicker boxer, who landed the cleaner, harder shots throughout the fight and wore Cancio down. Referee Grigorio Alvarez decided that Cancio, bleeding from a cut next to his left eye, had taken enough punishment and stopped the scheduled 10-round fight.

Diaz (22-0, 12 KOs), ranked in the Top 10 of three sanctioning bodies, is on the cusp of a world title shot.

A more-detailed report will follow.