Madueno on first loss: It wasn't my night; says Corrales is a dirty fighter

Miguel Madueno is vowing to come back stronger.

"El Explosivo" suffered his first loss as a professional, losing a unanimous decision to former world titlist Jezreel Corrales (26-4, 10 KOs) in their WBA lightweight title eliminator Saturday night at the Roberto Durán Arena in Panama City.

Both fighters were deducted a point in round three for dirty tactics. Corrales, though, was docked two additional points, one in round one and again in round eight.

The judges scored the bout 117-108, 115-109, and 116-108, all for Corrales, who picked up his third consecutive win.

While Madueno acknowledged he has improvements to make, he criticized Corrales for making it a dirty affair.

"It wasn't my night, and I'm going to go back to the gym and work on all the things I know I can improve on," said Madueño, who is promoted by Thompson Boxing. "Corrales was fighting dirty, so I had to retaliate with some dirty tactics of my own. It wasn't my best performance by far, but I'll be back with an improved version of myself. This is just a minor setback."

Madueno (27-1, 25 KOs), known for his punching power, floored Corrales in the opening round. He struggled to land a clean punch after that point, but it wasn't due to a lack of trying. Corrales, to his credit, got off the canvas and used the southpaw jab and angles to keep the artillery on hold.

The 23-year-old Madueno entered the fight, knocking out his last 13 opponents inside the distance. However, Corrales neutralized the napalm with effective movement and never gave Madueno a chance to set up his right hand after the opening frame.

Corrales-Madueno served as the chief support to Anselmo Moreno vs. Gustavo Pina Melgar, who stepped up on short notice.

Moreno, a former bantamweight world champion, knocked out the late replacement in the 10th round.