Canada’s Jean Pascal kept his World Boxing Council light heavyweight crown with a unanimous technical decision victory on Saturday over previously unbeaten US southpaw Chad Dawson.
The fight was halted by the ringside doctor in the 11th round after an accidental clash of heads opened a gash over the right eye of Dawson, sending the outcome to scorecards, including marks on the finished portion of the 11th.
Pascal was awarded the decision by judges’ scores of 108-101, 106-103 and 106-103. The Haitian-born champion improved to 26-1 with his 17th victory inside the distance, making his third successful title defense.
“I knew, with my speed in the ring, I could beat Chad Dawson,” Pascal said. “I was not tired. I knew Chad was tired. I thought, ‘Let him throw punches and I will get him at the end of the rounds.’”
Dawson suffered the first loss of his 10-year career, falling to 29-1 and complaining that he was held and head-butted by Pascal most of the fight.
“We both fought a great fight,” Dawson said. “He was holding and head butting me all night. I didn’t complain, not one time.”
Pascal staggered Dawson in the seventh round and both fighters landed powerful blows in the eighth, but by the start of the 11th it was Dawson who backed Pascal into a corner and landed a flurry of punches before the champion doubled over and escaped to the side, setting the stage for the head butting.
“I was on the way to stopping him and he knew that,” Dawson said. “Before they stopped the fight, I had him hurt. We had two more rounds to fight.”
Dawson plans on making Pascal live up to a rematch clause, although the champion is allowed another fight before he would have to meet Dawson again.
“I’ve got a rematch clause so we’re going to do it again,” Dawson said. “We’ve got to do it again.”
A possible next foe for Pascal is another Montreal-based world champion, Lucian Bute, the International Boxing Federation super middleweight champion one weight division below.
“I’m the boss in town. I’m one of the best in the world,” Pascal said. “If he wants to fight me, he has to challenge me.”
■IBF LIGHTWEIGHT
AFP, LAREDO, Texas
Mexico’s Miguel Vazquez won the vacant International Boxing Federation lightweight title on Saturday with a unanimous 12-round decision over South Korea’s Kim Ji-hoon.
Vazquez captured his first world title by judges’ scores of 120-108, 119-109 and 118-110 before a supportive crowd at the US-Mexico border town.
Winning the matchup of 23-year-olds improved Vazquez to 26-3 and put him among a trio of Mexican fighters claiming to be the best in the division.
Mexico’s Juan Manuel Marquez, 51-5 with 37 knockouts, owns the World Boxing Association lightweight crown while another Mexican, Humberto Soto, 52-7 with two drawn and 32 knockouts, owns the World Boxing Council version of the title.
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