Ahead of Saturday's fight against Manny Pacquiao for the WBA "regular" world welterweight title at the Axiata Arena, Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, live on ESPN+ streaming service, we look at Lucas Matthysse's most important fights of his career.
Nov. 6, 2010 vs. Zab Judah
Matthysse's first professional defeat in his 28th fight showed what an entertaining boxer he is and that he belonged at elite level.
After fighting his way out of obscurity on small shows in Argentina, Matthysse got his big chance against American Judah at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Matthysse sent the former undisputed world welterweight champion to the canvas in the 10th round and Judah ended the fight in survival mode.
Matthysse could not land the knockout blow he needed and Judah earned a controversial split decision (114-113, 114-113 and 113-114) in the super-lightweight bout.
June 23, 2012 vs. Humberto Soto
Matthysse earned his nickname "The Machine" for four KO wins in 2012 and 2013, which began with this demolition of Soto.
The Argentine announced himself as one of boxing's most ferocious punchers with this win over a former world champion and his career then began to take off.
After split-decision defeats to Judah and then Devon Alexander in 2011, Matthysse recorded a couple of wins in his homeland and was in dire need of a career boost.
And he got just that by flooring Soto for the first time in his career at the end of the fifth round at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Mexican Soto, who was unbeaten in four years before the fight, was pulled out by his corner at the end of the fifth round of the WBC super-lightweight title eliminator.
May 18, 2013 vs. Lamont Peterson
Matthysse's hot form saw him dispatch former world champion Peterson in three rounds for his sixth consecutive knockout win.
The Argentine was just too powerful and sent Peterson to the canvas three times at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
"Now we all know who the best 140-pound fighter is," Matthysse said, though no title was on the line after a dispute among the sanctioning bodies.
The performance earned Matthysse comparisons to Pacquiao.
April 18, 2015 vs. Ruslan Provodnikov
In one of the best fights of the year, Matthysse earned a majority decision over Russian Provodnikov after a thrilling shootout between two big hitters.
Two judges scored it 115-113 for Matthysse while the other had it a draw at Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York.
In a brutal bout of nonstop slugging, both hurt each other in the fourth round and then had their moments when they looked as if they could land the KO blow. Matthysse convincingly won the sixth round but was hurt in the 11th.
Oct. 3, 2015 vs. Viktor Postol
Matthysse's biggest setback was a surprise.
Matthysse had stopped eight of his previous 10 opponents and was expected to beat Postol for his first world title.
But Postol broke Matthysse's orbital bone, injured his cornea and knocked him out in the 10th round in a major upset at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.
Postol was not known for his knockouts, but the Ukrainian outboxed heavy-handed Matthysse before stopping him with a right hand in the 10th round.
Postol, who won the vacant WBC world super-lightweight title, used his height and considerable reach advantage to frustrate Matthysse.
The Argentine was not seen a ring again for 19 months.
Jan. 27, 2018 vs. Tewa Kiram
Matthysse's long pursuit of world title glory was rewarded when he knocked out Tewa Kiram in the eighth round to capture the WBA welterweight title.
The 35-year-old knocked down Kiram twice after coming alive in the eighth round of what had until then been a snoozer at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
After only one performance in 27 months, Matthysse failed to shine against his taller Thai opponent but showed his power is still there to clinch world title glory at the third attempt after defeats to Danny Garcia in 2013 and Postol in 2015.
"I just couldn't catch him, he was moving pretty well, but I was finally able to connect," Matthysse said.