RENO, Nev. — Jesse Brinkley scored a unanimous decision over Mike Paschall in a 10-round light heavyweight bout that was the main event of a nine-bout card at the Reno Event Center on Saturday.

Brinkley, who won by scores of 97-93 (twice) and 96-94, landed the harder punches during what turned out to be difficult boxing match for the hometown fighter thanks to lots of lateral movement from Paschall, a gutsy southpaw from Baltimore, Md.

With the victory, Brinkley, who hails from nearby Yerington, Nev., extended his win streak to eight bouts and kept his world title hopes alive.

If Brinkley (36-5, 22 knockouts) ever gets a shot a world title it will have to be in the super middleweight or middleweight division. It was clear from his dulled reflexes and late-bout fatigue that the 32-year-old participant of the first season of The Contender reality series is not suited to fighting in the 175-pound weight class.

Brinkley’s trainer Peter Manfredo Sr. says the fighter entered a quick, four-week camp weighing a little over 207 pounds. If anything, the trouble Paschal (19-2-1, 4 KOs) gave Brinkley with his footwork and counter punching served as a wake up call to the IBF’s No. 10-rated super middleweight to keep his weight down between fights.

In the co-featured bout of the Let’s Get It On/TKO Boxing co-promotion, lightweight fringe contender Rustam Nugaev (20-5-1, 11 KOs) stopped Nicaraguan journeyman Orlando Membreno (11-12-1, 10 KOs) in the sixth-round of a scheduled 10-round bout.

The Los Angeles-based Russian systematically broke Membreno down with a ruthless body attack and accurate combinations until the journeyman’s corner advised referee Robert Byrd to halt the bout. Membreno was a late substitute for fringe contender Miguel Angel Huerta.

Numerous prospects were in action on the undercard and the most impressive were the Chudinov brothers, two former amateur stars from Siberia, Russia, who made their pro debuts.

Middleweight Dmitry Chudinov stopped Otis Chennault (1-2) 40 seconds into the first round of their scheduled four rounder, dropping the Atlanta native twice with left hooks. A left hook to the head dropped Chennault seconds into the bout and a left hook to the body ended the fight.

Super middleweight Feder Chudinov stopped Shawn Kirk (5-4, 2 KOs) 33 seconds into the first round of their scheduled four rounder, dropping the Lexington, Ky. native for the count with a well-timed right cross.

Featherweight prospect Matt Remillard (18-0, 11 KOs) stopped Tyler Ziolowski (11-7, 6 KOs) with a single body shot one minute and 30 seconds into the first round of their scheduled six rounder. Remillard, of Manchester, Conn., landed a perfect left hook to Ziolowski’s liver that the journeyman from St. Joseph, Mo. Could not recover from.

Bantamweight prospect Leo Santa Cruz (9-0-1, 2 KOs) out-boxed Jonathan Velardez (6-2, 4 KOs) over six rounds, earning a unanimous decision by scores of 59-55 (twice) and 58-56. Santa Cruz, of Lincoln Heights, Calif., controlled most of the action with his jab and accurate straight rights. Velardez, of Cleveland, Texas, was effective only when he was able to get inside, which wasn’t often.

Middleweight prospect Derek Hinkey (8-1, 7 KOs) was able to outbox the very game Loren Myers (7-6, 2 KOs) to a close eight-round unanimous decision. Hinkey, who won by scores of 58-56 (twice) and 59-56, controlled the action when it took place in the center of the ring where his superior reach and athleticism served him well. However, the popular fighter from nearby McDermitt, Nev., had trouble whenever he allowed himself to be backed to the ropes, where Myers, of Fresno, Calif., was able to crowd him and land power shots. Myers won over the crowd with his game effort.

Heavyweight prospect Tyler Hinkey, Derek’s younger brother, engaged in what was probably the fight of the evening, a six-round bout against Andre Carthron that he lost. Carthron (3-2-2, 1 KO) won a close, hard-fought majority decision by scores of 58-56 (twice) and 57-57. The Los Angeles-based fighter was the busier of the two aggressive heavyweights in an all-action slugfest that featured many momentum swings. Hinkey (5-1-1, 4 KOs) thought he won the bout and invited Carthron to fight him in an immediate rematch.

Doug Fischer can be reached at [email protected]