LOS ANGELES --- It wasn't vintage Israel Vazquez for eight rounds, but "El Magnifico" retained his status as one of boxing's most exciting fighters by scoring a dramatic knockout over Angel Priolo in the ninth round on Saturday night at Nokia Theatre.

It was Vazquez's first fight in 19 months, so it wasn't unexpected that Vazquez would be rusty. He hadn't fought since he last defeated Rafael Marquez to complete their epic trilogy.

Vazquez, who needed five surgeries to repair a detached retina on his right eye following the third fight with Marquez, was in a familiar position of being battered, bruised and bloodied and in need of something spectacular to pull out a victory.

The big difference was he was facing Priolo, who had lost six straight heading into the fight, not a world-class opponent.

Still, Vazquez dug deep and connected a straight right that staggered Priolo. Two more rights sent Priolo to the canvas. Priolo barely beat the count and went down a second time after a big flurry of punches from Vazquez. The Colombian managed to get back to his feet, but Vazquez was relentless with his onslaught and put him down a third time. Referee Pat Russell stopped it at 2:10 of the ninth round.

"He was very tough," Vazquez said. "He had good distance in the beginning and I was a little rusty. I wanted the knockout. I was very hungry to win this fight.

"I'm a warrior and I've been showing that my entire career. Now, I want the big fight again."

Priolo doesn't exactly pack dynamite in his fists, but his punches were doing damage. By the fifth round, the left side of Vazquez's face was swollen from the constant rights that Priolo was able to land. Vazquez also had small cuts above both eyes.

Priolo and Vazquez were mixing it up in the sixth, and Priolo was the one getting the better of the exchanges. Vazquez just didn't have the same zip on his punches and his timing was off.

The ringside physician took a long look at Vazquez after the seventh round and decided to allow the fight to continue.

Blood was streaming down the side of the former two-time world champion's face as he fought valiantly to get himself back into the fight in the eighth round. The once small cut above Vazquez's left eye had morphed into a nasty gash by the end of the eighth round.

Judges Raul Caiz Jr. and Jose Cobian both had it tied, 76-76, after eight rounds, while judge Fritz Werner had Vazquez ahead, 78-74. Vazquez, of Huntington Park, upped his record to 44-4 with 33 KOs, while Priolo, of Barranquilla, Colombia, dropped to 30-8 with 20 KOs.

It wasn't exactly a spectacular knockout, but featherweight prospect Ronny Rios (7-0, 3 KOs) of Santa Ana took care of business, stopping John Wampash (1-2-1, 1 KO) of Miami, Fla., in the sixth round.

Rios used a methodical approach to break down Wampash with body shots and 1-2 combinations. He opened a cut above Wampash's left eye in the sixth round and started to apply more pressure. Wampash's corner had seen enough and informed referee Ray Corona to stop the fight at 1:53 of the sixth round.

In a matchup of undefeated super-welterweights, 2008 Mexican Olympian Luis Grajeda (7-0, 6 KOs) of Chihuahua, Mexico, made quick work of Juan Carlos Diaz (3-1, 2 KOs) of Mexico City, Mexico, scoring a second-round knockout.

Grajeda, who is managed by Shelly Finkel and Rolando Arellano, almost had Diaz out of there in the first round when he dropped him with a nifty move, switching to southpaw and cracking him with a left hook.

Grajeda, who was making his U.S. debut, scored two more knockdowns in the second round, both with straight right hands, and referee James Jen-Kin stopped it at the 2:48 mark.

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There are many boxing experts who call the three fights between Israel "El Magnifico" Vazquez and Rafael Marquez the greatest trilogy in boxing history.

There have been some amazing trilogies throughout the storied history of the sweet science, but few could combine the extremely high level technical skill, determination, raw brutality and drama that Vazquez and Marquez produced in their trilogy which took place over the course of 12 months from 2007-08.

The damage the two fighters sustained in their epic slugfests threatened to end their career. Marquez nursed his injuries and returned after a 14-month layoff to dismantle Jose Francisco Mendoza in three rounds in May.

Vazquez didn't know if he would ever be able to return. He had three surgeries to repair a detached retina before getting medically cleared to fight by the California State Athletic Commission this summer.

Vazquez returns to the ring for the first time in 19 months when he takes on Angel Priolo on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Nokia Theatre in L.A.

"Yes, of, course, it was very painful," Vazquez said. "Obviously, it was something that worried me. But now I feel so much better. I want to retire on my terms. I don't want to retire because of some injury. I want to retire after a big fight.

"There was never a worry about my sight. The sight was going to be OK. It was repairable. But what we were worried about and what the doctor was worried about was that I wouldn't be able to sustain any punches in boxing. I had three surgeries to repair it and finally they got it right and it's fine now.

"I still have a lot of life left in boxing. In fact, it's like an itch. I have an itch I want to scratch. I'm going to prove it on (Saturday night) that I'm still capable of so many things."

Freddie Roach was Vazquez's trainer, but he thought Vazquez should retire because of all the damage Vazquez sustained in a seventh-round TKO loss to Marquez in their first fight. That's when Marco Antonio Barrera's former trainer Rudy Perez joined Team vazquez. He guided Vazquez to a sixth-round TKO over Marquez in the rematch and a split decision victory in the third fight.

"Defense is the most important thing," Perez said. "That's what we've been working on. When there's defense, the style looks a lot better."

There are many who believe Vazquez's aggressive style and warrior mentality will take over the moment vazquez gets punched. It's hard to fight natural instincts.

"Yeah, I like to be aggressive," Vazquez said, "but I can always improve. I don't want to keep receiving these punches. It's not fun receiving these punches. So if I can enhance my style and get hit less, then it's better for me and I'll be a better fighter."

Vazquez said is ready and willing to fight any of the champions at featherweight or even rekindle the Mexico vs. Puerto Rico rivalry by taking on WBO super-bantamweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez, who takes on Rogers Mtagwa on Saturday at 6 p.m. on pay-per-view. And he's all for a fourth fight against Marquez.

"First and foremost, we're warriors and, secondly, we have a lot of pride," Vazquez said. "Those fights were very exciting fights with a lot of punches and a lot of give and take. Look, if the fans want it and the people want to see it, why not? After all, this is a sport. I'm willing to do it. We have a lot of pride and we feel at any moment any one of us can win. That's what makes us want to fight each other again."

Go online at ticketmaster.com for tickets ($25-$200).

Two-time world champion Israel Vazquez will hold a public workout on Tuesday at 12 p.m. at Olvera Street in Los Angeles.

Vazquez comes back after a 19-month layoff to fight Angel Priolo on Saturday at Nokia Theatre.

Priolo, former national amateur champion Ronny Rios of Santa Ana, rising super-featherweight prospect David Rodela of Oxnard, undefeated Carlos Molina of Norwalk and undefeated featherweight Khabir Suleymanov of L.A. will also participate in the public workout.

Placita Olvera is located at 125 Paseo De La Plaza in L.A.

Call 800-745-3000 or go online at ticketmaster.com for tickets ($25-$200) to Saturday night's card at Nokia Theatre.

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LOS ANGELES --- Former WBC super-bantamweight champion Israel "El Magnifico" Vazquez returns to the ring after a 19-month layoff to take on Angel Priolo on Oct. 10 at Nokia Theater on HBO Latino.

Vazquez was involved in one of the greatest trilogies in boxing history, winning two out of three fights against Rafael Marquez in a 12-month stretch from 2007-08.

Vazquez paid a price for the three memorable battles with Marquez. A detached retina threatened to end the career of the 31-year-old Mexican warrior. Vazquez had surgery and was medically cleared to fight earlier this summer.

Vazquez held an open workout on Tuesday at Westside Boxing Club in L.A. "El Magnifico" looked very sharp with his combinations while working the mits with trainer Rudy Perez. His footwork and movement looked excellent. He was sharp and crisp with his punches on the double-end bag.

Vazquez said all his focus is on his comeback fight against Priolo. After that, he is open to a fourth fight against Marquez or a Mexico vs. Puerto Rico showdown against WBO super-bantamweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez.

Vazquez said "I'm still hungry" and he wants to prove he can come back and regain his status as one of the top fighters pound-for-pound in the world.

Here is an interview with Vazquez following his workout:

Here is some raw footage of "El Magnifico" working out: