By Jake Donovan

Not even revisionist history could suggest that Alex Miskirtchian was one punch away from becoming featherweight champion, but he'll never forget the sequence that at least put him in reach of achieving his longtime goal.

He can't forget because it's the one that got away, a moment that will stay with him even as he faces Cornelius Lock in a featherweight bout Tuesday evening at MCU Park in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn, New York.

"I gained a lot of experience in my fight with Evgeny Gradovich," says the 29-year old Armenian boxer, born in the Eurasia country of Georgia and raised in Belgium. "My biggest regret is that I didn't finish him when I knocked him down in round six."

Gradovich seemed to have been better prepared for the knockdown than was Miskirtchian. A perfectly timed left hand dropped the defending champ with less than a minute to go in the 6th round of their title clash in Macau last May. Gradovich immediately bounced up and—upon receiving a mandatory eight-count—responded with two shots upstairs. 

For reasons only he can explain, Miskirtchian failed to follow up. Instead, he spent the rest of the night allowing Gradovich to get off first, adding to his sizeable lead and ultimately claiming a 12-round unanimous decision. 

It was a learning experience for Miskirtchian, who in his lone title challenge to date was also fighting outside of Europe for the first time in his career. He has since bounced back with a decision win at home this past March, as he now transitions towards his first fight in the United States.

Awaiting him in Brooklyn will be a veteran spoiler in Lock, who at his best can outbox and outpunch just about anyone in and around the featherweight division. Whatever his worst day looks like is not a scenario Miskirtchian cares to envision. 

"The plan is to impress and (win over) the crowd," Miskirtchian (25-3-1, 9KOs) promises. "I don't care what he did in his last fight (Lock suffered a 7th round knockout loss to fellow spoiler William Gonzalez last May); this is the main event and I want to give it my all out of respect to my promoter (former super lightweight contender) Dmitriy Salita for granting me this opportunity.

"After (Tuesday), my goal is to be eligible for a final eliminator and fight for a world title in 2016, which will be my year." 

Such a road could lead to a rematch with Gradovich, who has since lost his title to Lee Selby but is anxious to reclaim past glory. So what would Miskirtchian do if presented with a second chance at a lasting impression?

"If I could face him today, I wouldn't wait," Miskirtchian promises. "I would finish him off ASAP."

Tuesday's show in Brooklyn will be streamed live on ESPN3.com.

Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com.
Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
Facebook Page: JakeBScene