New York City- It wasn’t easy; it was actually pretty grueling. But Brooklyn legend Heather “The Heat” Hardy (24-2, 4 ko) found a way to gut out a majority decision against the sharp shooting Taynna Cardoso (5-2, 1 ko) in front of a packed Sony Hall in New York City. The judges saw the fight 76-76, 78-74, and 77-75 in favor of Hardy. ITRBoxing scored the bout 76-76.

Hardy came out particularly aggressive in this one, throwing caution to the wind and letting her hands go in combination from the opening bell. Cardoso, for her part, was not as active as Hardy but was catching and shooting pretty effectively throughout the fight, landing clean counters in between Hardy’s high work rate. Particularly early, it felt like Cardoso was landing the cleaner shots, but as the fight progressed and the body punishment added up, Hardy began getting the better of more of the exchanges.

The fight was an emotional one for Hardy, having lost her long time coach Hector Roca just weeks before the fight. But she dug deep and put on a gritty performance in front of her hometown fans.

This was a tough, rugged fight in which both fighters took a lot of punishment. Hardy’s legs at times looked unsteady, whether thats age, tough fights, inactivity or the loss of her trainer, or some combination those things. You have to wonder how many more times Hardy can go to that well, but at the moment she still has the ability to dig deep push forward, which is the part of her game she will probably never lose. It’s built into her. The last round of this brutal fight was her best round, proving her grit and determination. “I was a little sloppy, you know. It didn’t come out how I wanted it to. Not everyday’s Christmas but we got the job done, so that’s what counts.”

And it seems that she wants to continue pushing forward at the highest level. “I’d like a world title shot next. Amanda (Serrano) told me after Katie so I’m gunna sit with my hands folded, wait for her to call me in, and be ready.”

Whatever Hardy does next, she’s had an incredible career, having not started boxing until age 27 and becoming a world champion. She’s entertained both boxing and MMA fans for well over a decade, and it was awesome to see how much love she got from the fans. Perhaps that final title shot will be the end to her career that she seeks.

Terell Bostic Edges Veteran Clay Burns

In a fight that was perhaps tougher than expected and difficult to score, Terell Bostic (8-1, 1 ko) just edged veteran Clay Burns (10-17-2, 4 ko) by scores of 58-55, 57-56 and 60-53. ITRBoxing scored the bout 57-56 for Bostic, with the knockdown being the difference in the fight.

Burns, a guy who fought a few times in the Top Rank bubble, came out strong and outhustled Bostic for the first few rounds. But a hard counter uppercut dropped Burns in the third, changing the course of the fight at least in terms of scoring. Burns responded strongly after the knockdown.

The remainder of the fight favored Bostic, who despite the aggression from Burns was able to mostly make him miss and counter with the more effective shots. It was a gutsy performance from the Long Island native, but one he could have perhaps separated himself more from his opponent with a bit more activity. Nevertheless, a quality win against a guy who is much better than his record would indicate.

New York Native Michael Hughes Outhustles Nelson Morales

Jr. welterweight Michael Hughes (4-1, 1 ko) won an all out war against Nelson Morales (3-4) in a back and forth affair from bell to bell. Despite Morales’ early attempt to make the fight more of a boxing match, Hughes came out in the second with a sense of urgency and asserted his physicality and pressure, and sustained it for the remainder of the fight, outworking and out-punching Morales, winning by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the bout 39-37, as did ITRBoxing.

Tsendbaatar Erdenebat Shines, Stops Giovanni Gutierrez in 3rd

In an explosive performance, lightweight prospect Tsendbaatar Erbenebat (5-0, 3 ko) patiently stalked and stopped Giovanni Gutierrez (11-4-1, 6 ko) in a dominant performance. From the opening bell, Erbenebat patiently pressed the issue and forced Gutierrez to the ropes, throwing hard body shots and uppercuts in combination. Gutierrez was hurt with a hard straight left hand at the end of the second, forcing him to come out more aggressive for the third. But Erbenebat answered with hard counter uppercuts, and a final onslaught finished Gutierrez at 1:46 of the third round as his corner threw in the towel. It was a good stoppage of a fight that was becoming increasingly one sided. Erbenebat is an exciting, aggressive prospect that definitely made a splash in his U.S. debut.

Frederic Julan Outboxes Decarlo Perez

French born, Brooklyn resident and light heavyweight prospect Frederic Julan (13-2, 10 ko) counterpunched and cleverly boxed his way to a unanimous decision over Decarlo Perez (19-8-1, 6 ko) to open up the card. Perez could never quite pin Julan down for long enough to get off anything consistently, as Julan used his movement and counterpunching to consistently keep Perez off balance. Anytime Perez tried to close range he would be met with check right hooks and counter left hands from the hard hitting southpaw, often followed up with an angle out. Julan breaks a two fight losing streak, having lost to Khainell Wheeler, and in his last fight to amateur standout Joe Ward.