By Rick Reeno

Cosmopolitan Resort and Casino, Las Vegas - Lamont Peterson (29-1, 15KOs) knocked out Victor Cayo (26-2, 18KOs) in the twelfth and final round of an IBF junior welterweight final eliminator. Peterson is now the mandatory challenger to Amir Khan.

During the first round, the action started slow but a series of punches put Cayo down, but referee Kenny Bayless waved it off because the final blow of Peterson's combination hit Cayo to the back of the head. The action heated up in the second, with Cayo taking the fight to Peterson, but he was being outworked with accurate punching. Peterson was ripping Cayo with shots to the body in the third. Cayo didn't slow down, he came back in the fourth round with a very aggressive attack and was trying to overwhelm Peterson, who stayed patient and landed well-placed counters.

Cayo continued his aggression in the fifth and he was starting to land his punches more often. The action continued with a similar pace in the sixth and seventh. In the eight, Cayo was starting to slow down and he was breathing heavy with his mouth wide open. No second wind for Cayo in the ninth, but he found some energy in the tenth. For most of the tenth, they stood on the inside trading punches and it was very close.

In the eleventh, Cayo appeared to be more energized than Peterson, who may have been taking a round off to finish strong in the twelfth. And Peterson proved me right when he started the twelfth by landing multiple power punches to rock Cayo. Peterson stayed on him and was throwing big accurate punches, in bunches, as Cayo was trapped against the ropes. After taking a lot of punishment, Cayo finally fell down to his knees for the first knockdown of the fight. Referee Kenny Bayless counted him out.

Also on the show, light heavyweight prospect Badou Jack (7-0, 6KOs) blasted out Timothy Hall Jr. (6-12, 4KOs) in two rounds. After being cracked to the ribs with two hard hooks, Hall went down for the count of eight. Once Hall was able to stand, Jack overwhelmed him with punches in the corner for a second knockdown, and referee Kenny Bayless stepped in to stop the fight at 1:31.