They lived up to those lofty expectations, as they went toe-to-toe for 10 rounds, but Bohachuk emerged with a split decision win in the co-main event of Zuffa Boxing 2 at Meta Apex Center in Las Vegas. Tim Cheatham and Eric Cheek scored the bout 96-94 for Bohachuk, while Chris Migliore had it 96-94 for Butaev.

Bohachuk swept the final three rounds on Cheatham and Cheek’s scorecards, according to the broadcast. 

"For him, this is a fight," Bohachuk said after the win. "For me, this is war. Every round for me is war."

Bohachuk (27-3, 24 KOs) and Butaev (16-2, 12 KOs) fought in close quarters from the opening bell and didn’t find it difficult to find each other at any point during their grueling war. Even as Butaev switched stances to southpaw and tried to box more with his back to the ropes, they both landed clean shots consistently. 

The tide began to tilt ever so slightly in Bohachuk’s favor as the smaller Butaev visibly started to tire and breathe with his mouth open. Still, both fighters landed power shots throughout every round to the head and body. 

With the fight still up for grabs in the 10th round, they found themselves in the same spot on the ropes and barely moved, trading blows until the final bell. 

Bohachuk was coming off a unanimous decision loss to Brandon Adams, who has given him two of his three defeats as a pro. The only other loss of Bohachuk’s career was a narrow majority decision to Vergil Ortiz (24-0, 22 KOs).

In other fights:

10 rounds, light heavyweight: Radivoje Kalajdzic (30-3, 22 KOs) def. Oleksandr Gvozdyk (21-3, 17 KOs) by seventh-round knockout

10 rounds, 157-pound catchweight: Jalil Hackett (12-1, 9 KOs) def. Roberto Cruz (11-2, 7 KOs) by majority decision (97-93, 96-94, 95-95)

8 rounds, lightweight: Justin Viloria (12-0, 8 KOs) def. Oscar Perez (14-1-2, 7 KOs) by unanimous decision (79-73, 78-74, 77-75)

8 rounds, 150-pound catchweight: Damoni Cato-Cain (9-1-2, 7 KOs) def. Christian Morales (7-1, 7 KOs) by unanimous decision (80-72, 79-73, 77-75)

6 rounds, heavyweight: Damazion Vanhouter (11-0, 8 KOs) def. Julian Gomez (7-4, 2 KOs) by third-round TKO

6 rounds, cruiserweight: Jamar Talley (6-0, 5 KOs) def. Devonte Williams (13-4, 6 KOs) by second-round knockout