Judges John McCarthy and Don Trella scored it 119-108 apiece, while Max DeLuca had it 118-109. Russell (22-1, 13 KOs) versus Santillan (16-3, 7 KOs) was the second fight on the pay-per-view portion of the Rolando Romero-Teofimo Lopez undercard. The card headlined by their WBA welterweight title fight can still be streamed on DAZN and Amazon Prime Video for $79.99.

Naoya Inoue is the undisputed 122-pound champion. If Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs), The Ring’s No. 1-ranked fighter pound-for-pound, moves up to featherweight for his next fight, that could lead to Russell being elevated to full titleholder by the WBA.

After a largely forgettable contest filled with clinches and warnings from referee Robert Hoyle, Russell landed the most significant punch of the fight at the very beginning of the 12th round, when he dropped Santillan with a counter right hook to his temple.

Russell, 33, stayed on the offensive, but Santillan managed to hold on and survived to the final bell.

Russell, a southpaw from Capitol Heights, Maryland, boasted much faster hands, and it was evident when he threw combinations from range. He landed the cleaner shots throughout and thwarted Santillan’s attack by closing the gap and smothering him, leading to many of the clinches.

Russell’s skills and speed proved too much for Santillan, a southpaw from La Romana, Dominican Republic.

Santillan’s successful moments were few and far between. He did his best work to Russell’s body, but he struggled to sustain his momentum throughout the fight.

Santillan, 31, was more than apt to complain to Hoyle early in the fight regarding Russell clinching and landing punches he felt were to the back of his head.

Hoyle halted the action in the third round to warn both fighters for clinching and gave another warning in the fourth. Between the sixth and seventh rounds, Hoyle warned that he would start deducting points if the holding persisted.

Hoyle took no points in the fight.

Carlos Utria withstood the toughest test of his career to win a split decision over Israel Mercado in a back-and-forth, 10-round junior welterweight bout that started the pay-per-view part of the card.

Judge Chris Migliore had it 96-94 for Utria (15-0, 11 KOs), while Patricia Morse Jarman had it wider for him (97-93). Steve Weisfeld scored it 96-94 for Mercado (13-2-2, 7 KOs).

Utria, a 22-year-old prospect from Soplaviento, Colombia, was a 16-1 favorite according to FanDuel. You wouldn’t have known it as their fight unfolded.

The fighter who pressed forward and let his hands go had success throughout the fight. Utria connected with the harder shots, while Mercado’s volume gave him the edge in the rounds he controlled.

With the fight still appearing to be up for grabs entering the final two rounds, Mercado pressed forward and landed the cleaner shots while Utria was clearly tired and his volume dipped significantly.

The unofficial punch stats illustrated how close the fight was. The 31-year-old Mercado, of Montclair, California, out-landed Utria 157 to 152 in total punching and 94 to 93 in power shots.

Utria, who made his U.S. debut in his first fight after winning the WBC Grand Prix last year, missed weight by 0.8 pounds.

Marco Romero (15-0, 13 KOs) def. Kahlil Mitchell (6-2, 4 KOs) TKO 1 (2:33) – middleweights

Joseph Brown (8-0, 5 KOs) def. Alton Wiggins (3-3-1) UD 6 (60-54, 60-54, 60-54) – junior middleweights

Aldo Blancas (3-0, 2 KOs) def. Ricky Malone (0-1-1) UD 4 (40-35, 39-36, 39-36) – junior welterweights

Benjamin Johnson (8-0, 7 KOs, 1 NC) def. Jose Gabriel Rodriguez (4-4-1, 3 KOs) UD 6 (60-54, 60-54, 59-55) – welterweights