Amir Khan ensured there were no more losses for him at the end of a costly week by stopping Paul McCloskey on a cut in the sixth round on Saturday night.
The World Boxing Association (WBA) champion made a fourth successful world title defense by technical unanimous decision after a cut above McCloskey’s left eyebrow, caused by a clash of heads, prompted referee Luis Pabon to stop the fight in the sixth round in front of 18,000 supporters at the MEN Arena.
Khan began the week losing an estimated ￡1 million (US$1.63 million) after a TV dispute ended in UK broadcaster Sky TV refusing to screen his fight, but the Englishman stayed on course for bigger pay-days.
Photo: AFP
However, it was an anti-climatic end to a fight that was just coming to the boil and McCloskey’s corner were furious that the Northern Irishman was not allowed to continue.
It was the 25th win of Khan’s career with just one defeat, while McCloskey suffered the first blemish on his record, dropping to 22 wins and one defeat.
The 2004 Olympic silver medalist won by scores of 60-54 on all three judges’ scorecards, after a clash of heads. The Northern Irish challenger entered the ring unbeaten European champion and it seemed like he was the home fighter with more than 6,000 traveling fans roaring him on.
McCloskey, 31, cleverly kept out of range for most of the opening round to avoid Khan’s customary quick start.
Khan had sparred with Filipino Manny Pacquiao and claimed it was perfect preparation to face another southpaw in McCloskey.
And Khan began finding McCloskey more in the second as McCloskey failed to deal with the champion’s hand-speed.
McCloskey had stopped all five of his previous five opponents, but Khan was a steep step up in class.
Yet the challenger did not look out of depth in a see-saw third round, landing a left flush on the jaw from close range.
Khan shook McCloskey with a right in the fourth and increased his attacking bursts in a lively fifth round.
McCloskey survived a furious assault from Khan in the sixth before a clash of heads opened up a gruesome 5cm cut stretching from the forehead to left eyebrow.
Referee Pabon called in the ringside doctor, who immediately called for the fight to be stopped, with the judges’ scorecards of 60-54 deciding the outcome by technical unanimous decision.
The crowd booed as the scores of 60-54 from all three judges were read out and there were angry scenes in the ring.
? Ortiz v Berto
AFP, MASHANTUCKET, Connecticut
Victor Ortiz dethroned previously unbeaten World Boxing Council welterweight champion Andre Berto on Saturday in an action-packed 12-round fight that saw both men on the canvas.
Ortiz emerged with a convincing unanimous decision, improving to 29-2-2 with 22 wins inside the distance as he captured the WBC belt.
Ortiz knocked down Berto for the first time in the first round, and Berto responded by sending the off-balance challenger to the canvas in the second.
Ortiz rattled Berto in the third and punished the champion in the middle rounds.
The sixth was a thriller as Berto, standing his ground in the middle of the ring, knocked down Ortiz, only for Ortiz to drop the champion later in the same round. It was Berto’s first defeat in 28 professional fights.
The ringside judges scored it 115-110, 114-112 and 114-111 for Ortiz, who had a point deducted in one round for hitting behind the head.
“I fought like a possessed man, because that’s what the world and the crowd of boxing made me,” said Ortiz, who said he was stung by predictions that he couldn’t beat Berto.
Berto had made five successful title defenses since he knocked out Miguel Rodriguez in June 2008 to take the belt.
However, he looked like he might not make it out of the first round on Saturday. Ortiz stunned him with a right followed by a left hook that appeared to put the champion down, although referee Michael Ortega ruled it a slip.
Ortiz produced another knockdown before Berto made it out of the first.
Ortiz was in control in the second when Berto backed him up with a short right. The challenger stayed on his feet and took a brief count from Ortega.
Ortiz piled on more pressure in the following rounds, but in the sixth Berto woke up, punishing Ortiz before knocking him down with a right.
Seconds before the bell, however, Ortiz sent Berto down with another left hook.
After letting another big lead slip with an error-strewn performance at the French Open on Wednesday, top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka felt like getting as far away from the courts as possible. “Just want to quit tennis right now,” Sabalenka said after wasting a lead of a set and two breaks in a 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 loss to Diana Shnaider in the women’s singles quarter-finals. “We’ll see in few days. Hopefully I’ll get back on track mentally.” Sabalenka’s wait for a first French Open title continues despite the four-time major winner leading 4-1 in the second set and being two points from victory while
BIG NAMES GONE: Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title, reaching semi-finals for the fifth time in six years and finishing second on three occasions Alexander Zverev on Tuesday breezed past Rafael Jodar to stay on course for an elusive Grand Slam title at the French Open, while Jakub Mensik halted Joao Fonseca’s scintillating run in the quarter-finals. Zverev, the highest-ranked player left in the men’s draw, put an end to Spanish teenager Jodar’s impressive Roland Garros debut, easing into the semi-finals with a 7-6, (7/3), 6-1, 6-3 win. The 29-year-old Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title. He has finished runner-up on three occasions, including at the 2024 French Open. “I want to win the matches that are ahead of
For some, Cristiano Ronaldo remains the essential spearhead for Portugal’s FIFA World Cup bid, while others believe his presence would prevent Roberto Martinez’s strong side from flourishing. The debate around the five-time Ballon d’Or winner rages on, as it did at UEFA Euro 2024 and four years ago in Qatar — yet Ronaldo endures, ready to play in a record sixth World Cup. The 41-year-old remains a global superstar despite swapping the European elite for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr, and is the leading men’s international goalscorer with 143 strikes. With 25 of those coming in 30 games under Martinez, the coach
Taiwanese sprinter Chen Yi-cen on Friday won the silver medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, with a time of 53.16 seconds. Chen, 15, was the youngest among the eight finalists, and her performance also met the qualifying standard of 53.50 seconds for the Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September and October. Chen first made her mark at the National Games in Tainan in 2023, at the age of 13, winning the women’s 400m final in 55.55 seconds to become the youngest gold medalist in the history of the event. Meanwhile,
RSS