American Devon Alexander retained his WBC and IBF junior welterweight titles with a unanimous 12-round decision over Andriy Kotelnik of the Ukraine on Saturday.
The 23-year-old Alexander (21-0) won 116-112 on all three cards.
He scored enough points early to withstand a late charge from 31-year-old Kotelnik (31-4-1), a former WBA super lightweight champion.
Alexander suffered a deep cut over his right eye in the 10th round but was able to keep away from Kotelnik long enough to record the decision. He hopes to face fellow title-holder Timothy Bradley (26-0) in a battle of unbeaten 140-pound (63.5kg) fighters in January.
“I thought I did enough to win,” Alexander said. “It was an OK performance. He was tough as nails, give him credit.”
Alexander, a southpaw, used a stick-and-jab method to rack up points early in the fight. He was the more active fighter and held a 1,113-763 advantage in punches thrown during the 12-round affair.
“I trained for 12 rounds and got the victory,” Alexander said. “That is what I came here to do.”
Kotelnik, 31, opened a cut above Alexander’s right eye in the fifth round. The cut opened further in the 10th, forcing Alexander to hang on down the stretch while cramping up in the final round.
“It was my first cut, but I fought through it like a world champion,” Alexander said.
Kotelnik, a silver medalist at the 2000 Olympics, won three of the last four rounds on one judge’s card and two of the last four on the other two. However, it wasn’t enough to overcome Alexander’s strong start.
Kotelnik felt the judges were influenced by the pro-Alexander crowd of 9,117.
“I want the belt, I deserve it,” Kotelnik said through an interpreter. “If the fight happened anywhere but here, I would be the champion. I have no words to describe what happened. That guy has something that belongs to me.”
Alexander, an amateur Golden Gloves standout, jumped into the limelight with an eighth-round knockout of Juan Urango in March and solidified his reputation as an up-and-coming fighter with the gutsy win on Saturday.
Earlier, IBF light heavyweight champion Tavoris Cloud of the US successfully defended his crown with a hard-earned unanimous decision over Jamaican veteran Glen Johnson.
Cloud (21-0), 28, used his strength to wear down the 41-year-old Johnson (50-14-2). All three judges scored the fight 116-112.
In a preliminary bout, Cornelius Bundrage recorded a technical knockout of IBF junior middleweight champion Cory Spinks 1:28 into the fourth round. Bundrage (30-4), the mandatory challenger, knocked Spinks into the ropes and referee Mark Nelson stopped the fight before completing the count. Bundrage has 18 knockouts. Spinks is 37-6.
Floyd Mayweather Jr, Evander Holyfield and St Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson were in attendance.
ADVANTAGE ATLETICO: Well off the pace in La Liga, the Copa del Rey represents Atletico Madrid’s best chance of silverware this season Atletico Madrid on Thursday hammered Copa del Rey holders Barcelona 4-0 in the first leg of their semi-final. After an Eric Garcia own-goal sent Diego Simeone’s side ahead early on, Antoine Griezmann, Ademola Lookman and Julian Alvarez struck to give Atletico a landslide lead by halftime. Barca defender Garcia was sent off in the final stages, with Atletico maintaining their significant advantage on the record 32-time winners, which they take into the second leg at the Camp Nou on March 3. Both sides missed good chances in the second half, with Barca’s Pau Cubarsi having a goal disallowed before Garcia was sent off
Dasun Shanaka hammered the fastest half-century by a Sri Lankan in T20Is as the cohosts thrashed Oman by 105 runs at the World Cup yesterday in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, for their second win in Group B. The 2014 champions piled up 225-5, the highest total of the tournament, before restricting an outclassed Oman to 120-9. The 43-year-old Mohammad Nadeem waged a lone battle for Oman, compiling an unbeaten 53 to become the oldest player to score a 50 in T20 World Cups. Having promoted himself up the order and under pressure to deliver, Sri Lanka skipper Shanaka smashed a 19-ball half-century. It has been
Kawhi Leonard on Sunday scored 41 points, grabbed eight rebounds and made four steals to lead the Los Angeles Clippers in a lopsided 115-96 victory at Minnesota. The 34-year-old forward, a two-time NBA champion, matched the second-best road scoring effort of his career as the Clippers improved to 25-27. “Just being aggressive. My teammates trust me,” Leonard said. “Every moment when I touch the ball — assist, shooting the basketball or getting a rebound — I’m just trying to help the team win.” Leonard made three steals in a row at the start of the contest. “Just wanted to come out early in the
FLOP TO CONQUEROR: It was sweet vindication for Sam Darnold, who played for four NFL teams before his debut season in Seattle ended in the ultimate win The Seattle Seahawks on Sunday coasted to Super Bowl glory, routing the New England Patriots 29-13 as Sam Darnold sealed his journey from flop quarterback to conqueror of the NFL’s biggest prize. Brushing off a reputation for wilting in big games, journeyman quarterback Darnold threw for a touchdown and 200 yards on the grandest stage of all to give the Seahawks their second-ever Lombardi Trophy. “It’s unbelievable. Everything that has happened in my career, but to do it with this team, I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Darnold said. The victory was buoyed by a dominant defensive display and kicker Jason Myers’
RSS