Jose Roman has been known to not have the best chin, having been dropped in previous fights. No worries, as Roman survived three knockdowns, dug deep, and pulled off a come-from-behind victory.

Roman won a 10 round unanimous decision over Luis Solis at the Doubletree Hotel Events Center in Ontario, Calif. With the victory, Roman won a regional title belt.

The bout headlined a six-bout "New Blood" card, presented by Thompson Boxing Promotions. The card also was in conjunction of the promotional company celebrating their 14th anniversary promoting fights in the Inland Empire of Southern California.

Roman has now won two fights in a row, after going winless in two previous fights, where he had been dropped in those bouts. Solis had not fought since stopping Orlando Ramos on Nov. 1.

Solis swung momentum in his favor midway through the first round by dropping Roman with a right uppercut to the head. Roman got up, but was soon met with a barrage of punches, dropping him again to the canvas. Right before the bell sounded to end the round, Roman was dropped by a left-right combination to the head.

It took Roman a round or so, but he was able to get his bearings back and was able to find a rhythm. Not only was Roman beginning to time Solis off the ropes, but he was able to beat Solis to the punch during a number of exchanges in the middle rounds.

Solis' punch output dropped significantly in the seventh and eighth rounds, whereas Roman threw a steady amount of punches and combinations to the head.

Sensing he was down, Solis pressed the action in the final two rounds. He got back to what was working for him early in the fight, which was throwing and landing overhand right hands to the head.

It was too little, too late as Roman was able to win on all three judges' scorecards, 94-93, 94-93, and 95-92.

Roman, from Garden Grove, Calif., goes to 17-1-1, 12 KOs. Solis, from Progreso, Yucatan, Mexico, drops to 12-3-4, 10 KOs.

Reyes and Zarate fight ends in draw

Super bantamweights Juan Reyes and Isaac Zarate fought to an eight round majority decision draw.

The southpaw Zarate landed the telling blows in the first round, countering Reyes with left crosses or right hooks to the head. Reyes controlled the next three rounds by walking Zarate down, landing at will to Zarate's head and body. 
Zarate began attacking Reyes' body in the fifth round, countering with left hands to Reyes' midsection. The tactic seemed to work as Reyes' punch output dropped over the next round or two.

Reyes suffered a cut over his right eye by what looked like an accidental head-butt. Sensing Zarate could attack the eye, Reyes pressed the fight, increasing his punch output. He came on aggressively in the final round, getting on the inside of Zarate's guard and landing at will.

One judge scored the bout 77-75 in favor of Reyes, while the other two judges scored the bout 76-76.

Reyes, from nearby Riverside, goes to 10-1-3, 1 KO, while Zarate goes to 7-1-1.

Amador gets split win over Suarez

Junior flyweight Sindy Amador won a 10 round split decision over Maria Suarez.

Amador pressed the action from the opening bell, walking Suarez down and trying to get on the inside. She was successful, beating Suarez to the punch with shots to the head and body.

Suarez began timing Amador by the third round, landing right uppercuts to the head. Both fighters had their moments in the middle rounds, where Suarez's right hands to the head and Amador's attack to the body stood out.

Amador's attack to the body began to pay dividends in the second half of the fight as Suarez's punch output dropped. Sensing she was down on the scorecards, Suarez rallied in the final two rounds, landing the more telling blows during exchanges.

One judge scored the bout 96-94 in favor of Suarez, but the other two judges scored the bout 97-93 and 96-94 in favor of Amador, who goes to 12-1, 1 KO. Suarez drops to 8-1-1.
In other bouts:

– Super featherweight Cesar Valenzuela (6-3, 3 KOs) won a six round majority decision over previously-unbeaten Mario Amador (5-1, 3 KOs). Valenzuela dropped Amador in the second and referee Raul Caiz, Jr. deducted a point from Amador in the sixth round for hitting Valenzuela in the back of the head. One judge scored the bout 56-56, while the other two judges scored the bout 58-54 for Valenzuela.

– Lightweight Cesar Villarraga (3-0, 2 KOs) stopped Wilberth Lopez in the fourth and final round. Villarraga dropped Lopez (3-3, 1 KO) in second round and hurt him in the fourth, prompting referee Jack Reiss to stop the bout at 2:22.

– Heavyweight LaRon Mitchell (4-0, 4 KOs) stopped Derrick Williams in the first round. Mitchell dropped Williams (0-3) twice, prompting referee Raul Caiz, Jr. to stop the fight at 55 seconds.

Francisco A. Salazar has written for RingTV since October of 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. He also covers boxing for the Ventura County (CA) Star newspaper, Boxingscene.com, and Knockout Nation. He can be reached by email at [email protected] or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing