The career of junior welterweight contender Alex Saucedo is over at 26 because of brain bleeds, according to multiple reports.
Saucedo suffered two brain bleeds during his unanimous-decision loss to Arnold Barboza Jr. on the Teofimo Lopez-Vasiliy Lomachenko card on Oct. 17 in Las Vegas, ESPN reported.
Saucedo told ESPN that the damage was caused by a clash of heads in the first round of the 10-round fight.
“My career is done,” Saucedo said. “But I’m glad to be alive.”
He went on: “I’ve never saw another fighter come out alive after one of these. But if I get hit again, I might not be able to talk about it.”
Saucedo reportedly spent three nights at a hospital in Las Vegas.
The Mexican-born Oklahoman (30-2, 19 KOs) lost by a seventh-round knockout to Maurice Hooker in November of 2018, his only major title fight.
He rebounded to defeated Rod Salka and Sonny Fredrickson, which led to the Barboza fight. A victory over Barboza would’ve been a significant step toward a second title shot.
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