Mathieu controlled much of the game with his speed, movement and sharp combinations, although Falcao enjoyed moments of success with his southpaw attack in the middle rounds. The former world title challenger remained competitive, but Mathieu’s youth and activity gradually took over.
The finish came late in the eighth round when Mathieu landed a left hook before following up with a sustained attack that dropped Falcao. Although the Brazilian beat the count, referee Steve St-Germain stopped the fight at the end of the round.
Falcao fell to 32-3 (21 KOs), while Mathieu added another notable name to his growing resume as he continues to climb the super middleweight ranks.
In the co-feature, Mehmet Unal remained undefeated after fighting Yoann Kongolo to a majority draw in their ten-round light heavyweight contest. Kongolo often landed the heavier blows, while Unal’s higher work rate kept the fight close throughout. The judges returned scores of 96-94 for Kongolo and two identical cards of 95-95.
Moreno Fendero also maintained his undefeated record, stopping Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz in the eighth round of their super middleweight bout. Fendero dictated the action behind a steady jab and scored a takedown in the sixth before referee Martin Forest intervened after Gonzalez-Ortiz absorbed a series of unanswered punches.
Former world title challenger Leila Beaudoin captured the WBA interim title with a dominant unanimous decision win over Paulina Angel. Despite a cut from an accidental clash of heads in the second round, Beaudoin controlled the action throughout, scoring three identical scores of 100-90.
Thomas Chabot claimed the vacant WBC Continental Americas featherweight title with a majority decision win over Jose Antonio Sampedro in one of the night’s most entertaining encounters. Chabot withstood a fiery challenge from the Mexican before securing the decision with scores of 95-95, 96-94 and 97-93.
Elsewhere on the card, Erik Israqyelyan improved to 6-0 (4 KOs) with a first-round stoppage of Johan Guzman. Israqyelyan scored two takedowns before the fight was called off at 2:51 of the opening round.
Jordan Dzaba closed out the night’s action by earning a majority decision victory over Daylen Pepin in a four-round lightweight contest. After surviving a difficult opening round, Dzaba’s aggression was decisive as he claimed his third straight win.
