Montiel (48-4-2,37 KOs) is coming off a unanimous decision win over fellow Mexican Sergio Fuente in November last year and currently on his eight-fight winning streak since losing to Victor Terrazas in 2011.
It was a one-sided victory for the former Mexican bantamweight champion as he pummeled Dolinguez right in the first round, sending the Filipino challenger down the canvas twice.
Montiel pressed on and mounted another attack to finish Dolinguez as he scored another knockdown. But Dolinguez fought back despite the series of knockdowns in the early rounds and managed to finish the 10-round bout.
The judges came up with an identical score of 99-88, all in favor of Montiel.
Montiel is known for his gallant defense of his WBC and WBO bantamweight title against Nonito Donaire but lost via TKO in the second round.
Donaire, whose popularity soared tremendously following his TKO victory against Montiel is now preparing for his comeback fight against William Prado of Brazil on March 28 at the Mall of Asia Arena in the Philippines.
With the win, Montiel is now ripe for another major title fight. A rematch with Donaire, who is moving down to bantamweight after losing to Nicholas Walters of Jamaica via TKO in their featherweight title fight, would be a lucrative challenge for Montiel.
Montiel is one of Mexico’s popular boxers that include Juan Manuel Marquez, Eric Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera and Julio Cesarn Chaves, among others.
Doliguez, who needed a knockout to win against Montiel, suffered his third loss in his pro career with his record dropping to 19-3-2 with 14 KOs.
