Boxing:Ken Egan and John Joe Joyce's Miami team have been left with a mountain to climb in the World Series of Boxing (WSB) Americas group after losing 5-0 away to Los Angeles.
The win lifts LA ten points clear of third place Miami with just five matches left in the series. Mexico City are in second spot, while Memphis are propping up the four-team table.
Egan lost his bout after dropping a split-decision to Ukrainian light-heavyweight Vyacheslav Shabranskij. The Kiev-born fighter earned a 48-47,46-49,49-46 verdict from the three judges at the Avalon in Hollywood.
Egan's Irish team-mate Joyce ceded a walkover to LA middleweight Russell Lamour after picking up the flu.
The winners of the Asian, Americas and European groups plus the best runner up qualify for the WSB Team Championships semi-finals.
The defeat has all but ended Egan's chances of qualifying from the WSB Team Championships for the WSB Individual Championships which has five Olympic places up for grabs.
The top two ranked bantamweights, lightweights, middleweights, light heavyweights and heavyweights from the Team Championships will compete in the Individual Championships.