Kelly Pavlik and Alfonso LopezChris Trotman/Getty ImagesKelly Pavlik, left, rarely looked good doing it, but ultimately earned a victory over Alfonso Lopez.

LAS VEGAS — Sporting plenty of new tattoo ink and armed with his newfound sobriety, former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik returned to the ring for the first time in 13 months and won a majority decision over Alfonso Lopez on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

The bout was one of the featured contests on the Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley undercard, a high-profile spot for Pavlik to make his return.

Although the 29-year-old Pavlik looked quite rusty, that was to be expected. The Youngstown, Ohio, man was fighting for the first time since losing the middleweight title to Sergio Martinez by bloody decision in April 2010. Pavlik’s problem with alcohol became worse after that and, after a family intervention, he went to alcohol rehabilitation. He spent two months there — his second stint — before coming out in January with an apparent commitment to sobriety and his career.

Two judges scored the bout 99-91 while the third judge had it 95-95.

“The ring rust sure showed, but I know I won the fight,” Pavlik said. “I don’t know what happened with that one scorecard [from Adalaide Byrd]. I felt I did pretty good. The ring rust showed.” Said trainer Jack Loew: “There were two wins tonight. The first win was Kelly walking up the steps and getting in the ring. The second win was winning the fight.”

Rafael By Dan Rafael
ESPN.com