THE chief undercard bout on the Fernando Vargas/Shibata Flores card at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino was an absolute barn-burner.

Vivian Harris outslugged rugged Jose Juarez for ten brutal rounds in one of the year's best fights. Harris survived an early knockdown to overcome a split, albeit unpopular, decision. Also, former IBF (Jr) lightweight champion Roberto Garcia got back on the winning track via TKO and Olympian super-middleweight Jeff Lacy remains undefeated, though he was dragged into uncharted waters.

By far the most exciting fight of the night was the war between Harris and Juarez. Juarez took the first round by landing several solid lefts and rights to both Harris' head and body. Harris tried to fend him off with his jab, but Juarez was able to land some sneaky hooks under and over his jabs.

The second round began the exact way the first did, with Harris trying to box smoothly, and Juarez trying to bomb away. Near the end of the second, the two warriors traded massive shots until the bell sounded to end the action. Jose got the better of the two, but neither of them was hurt.

Throughout the third, Juarez picked up the pace and came home with several hard left hooks and uppercuts. The mostly Mexican crowd got behind their guy and chanted, "Mexico! Mexico!" for almost every combo Juarez threw.

Harris almost struck gold early in the fourth as he blasted Jose with a punishing overhand right. Juarez stumbled backwards near the ropes, but tried to fight back, only to be dealt a carbon copy of the same punch that already landed him in peril. Somehow, Juarez did not fall and fought back bravely, catching Harris with a sharp left hook. Once Harris felt the punch, he became angered and the two stood toe-to-toe for virtually the rest of the round.

The fight seemed to change hands in the fifth when, during a flurry from both, Juarez smashed a huge overhand right that caught Harris flush on the jaw, sending him hobbling over, then down. He beat the count, but was obviously shaken, leading to Juarez' immediate assault on his wounded victim. Harris almost went down again, but the ropes held him up. Referee Kenny Bayless seemed to jump in and stop the fight after Harris tasted two more brutal bombs when trapped against the ropes, but because Harris held on to Juarez for dear life, Bayless could not break them apart for almost ten seconds. Miraculously, Vivian survived the round.

In the sixth, both fighters hurt each other once again, mainly from combos to the body and head. Near the round's end, Harris's legs were totally back under him and his jab was working effectively. Harris again struck it big with a powerful straight right, followed instantly by a beautiful overhand right/left hook combo square on Juarez' cheeks. From that, Jose's right eye, already swollen, started to close.

The eighth and ninth rounds were both close, but the action slowed a bit because of the extensive war these two brave fighters waged. Something was strange about Juarez' back, though. There were stickers of letters on his back that read, "BEER". Nobody in the press section knew what it was until we all realised what it was; the turnbuckle decals from the Miller Lite logo had rubbed off and stuck to Jose's back! .

The final round was more of the same as the last two. Late in the round, Jose landed another huge left hook, but it was too little, too late to put him out, as Juarez was physically drained. When it was all said and done, the almost packed Events Center crowd erupted with applause. Both fighters leapt onto the corners and the crowd cheered them on. Everybody around knew it was close, but most picked Juarez as the winner.

The final tally was 95-94 for Juarez, 95-94 for Harris, and a ridiculous 97-92 for Harris. Once the winner was announced, boo birds came out in full effect, booing for a few minutes straight. I scored it 95-94 for Juarez.

Harris, from Brooklyn, rises to 19-1-1 (15), while Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico, falls to 11-4-1 (9). It was one hell of a fight, though.