A motivated Ray Beltran gets an important win over Bryan Vasquez

Mexico’s Ray Beltran won a fight and a better chance to permanently remain in the U.S. on Saturday night, defeating Costa Rica’s Bryan Vasquez by majority decision at L.A. Live’s Microsoft Theater.

Former junior-welterweight title contender Beltran (34-7-1) claimed a majority decision victory by scores of 95-95, 96-94, 96-94, to possibly set up a date later this year against Saturday main-event fighter Vasyl Lomachenko.

Lomachenko’s World Boxing Organization super-featherweight title defense against Colombia’s Miguel Marriaga ended after press time. See latimes.com/sports for full coverage.

Beltran needed the victory to enhance his bid to remain in the U.S. because his non-immigrant visa is nearing expiration.

He’ll submit a petition soon to the U.S. Customs and Immigration Services for permanent residency as someone with “extraordinary ability in professional boxing,” according to Beltran’s attorney.

“I put no pressure on myself,” over the situation, Beltran said. “I’m very motivated. I’m just here to fight.”

The bid has moved Beltran, who was honored by the North American Boxing Federation last month as its fighter of the year.

His speech in San Diego about what it has meant to have lived in this country with his family inspired his young son to walk on stage in tears and wrap his arms around his father’s midsection.

In the fight, Beltran’s power punches allowed him to appear to sweep the first three rounds, as Vasquez reeled from some of the blows.

Beltran pounded Vas-quez to the head with effective left hands in the fourth, closing the round with a jarring blow with Vasquez on the ropes.

An overhand right further discouraged Vasquez (36-3) in the sixth, freeing Beltran to set up more damaging blows.

“He can take a punch. I give him that,” Beltran said.

In the ninth, Vasquez landed a blow that cut Beltran near the right eye, and then the fighters accidentally butted heads in the 10th, causing a gash on Beltran’s forehead.

“Because of the cuts, I couldn’t see well with the blood in my eye,” Beltran said.

Vasquez desperately pressed for a finish, backing Beltran to the ropes late in the final round, but he couldn’t stop him.

“I was a little surprised the judges had the fight so close,” Beltran said. “My goal is to win. It doesn’t matter if it’s a decision or knockout.”

Earlier, San Fernando Valley’s Mikaela Mayer won her professional debut with a first-round knockout of Widnelly Figueroa, the stoppage coming 1:15 into the first round.

“I thought I’d be more nervous, but I felt calm,” Mayer said, relying on her jab to set up a hard combination to the body that dropped Figueroa.

Veteran amateur coach Al Mitchell, Mayer’s trainer, said his first female fighter after handling a slew of male Olympians, including Floyd Mayweather Jr., impressed him with her “confidence, boxing and sitting down on punches.

“She listens, she’s humble and every month, she gets better,” Mitchell said after Mayer said she’s prepared to fight frequently.

Also, Oxnard-trained junior-welterweight Maxim Dadashev improved to 8-0 with his seventh knockout, an eighth-round TKO of Phoenix’s Jose Marrufo (9-7-2).

South El Monte’s Arnold Barboza Jr. remained unbeaten (17-0) by surviving a fifth-round knockdown after landing a knockdown punch against Jonathan Chicas before judges awarded him a unanimous-decision victory by scores of 76-74, 77-73, 78-72.