By Joe Harrison

In the untelevised portion of ESPN Friday Night Fights, welterweight Ahmad Cheikho (13-5-2, 8 KOs) scored a first-round technical knockout over Francisco Rios-Gil (14-22, 8 KOs) in a scheduled six-round contest at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, IL.

Not long after the opening bell, Cheikho staggered his opponent with a hard left hook. As the round continued, Cheikho continued to unload his arsenal of punches, but it was the left hook that would drop Rios-Gil a total of three times. Following the third knockdown, referee Celestino Ruiz had seen enough and called an end to the bout at the official time of 2:53 in the opening round.

Also on the card, lightweight Jose Felix Quesada made a successful pro debut as he defeated Christopher Jackson (0-2) by a third-round technical knockout in a scheduled four-round bout. During the first round, Quesada was the aggressor as he threw quick combinations at rapid speed. Jackson reacted by fighting back hard, making it a competitive affair.

The action continued between both boxers in round two, but round three was a different story. Quesada continued to throw quick combinations as Jackson shook his head no and provoked Quesada to come after him. Quesada responded by continuing his attack and dropping Jackson. Jackson beat the count, yet he was determined unfit to continue. The time of stoppage was 2:24 in round three.

Plus, super welterweight Patryk Szymanski (8-0, 3 KOs) scored a second-round TKO over Daniel Hicks (5-5, 3 KOs) in a scheduled six-round contest. Hicks went down twice in the second round, prompting the stoppage at the time of 2:10.

In addition, cruiserweight prospect Junior Wright (10-0, 9 KOs) defeated Galen Brown (40-26-1, 23 KOs) by a fourth-round TKO in a six-round bout. The end was declared at 0:21.

Female super lightweight Kristin Gearhart (3-0, 1 KO) defeated Allanna Jones (0-2) by a technical knockout when Jones did not come out for round four. The four-round contest was a rematch of their fight last November when Gearhart earned a four-round unanimous decision.