Posted at 7:25 p.m., Saturday, May 5, 2007
Mayweather tops De La Hoya in split decision
Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather Jr. wanted to give Oscar De La Hoya a beating. He had to settle for just getting a win.Mayweather won one of boxing's richest fights ever tonight by using his superb defensive skills and superior speed to take a 12-round split decision and win the WBC 154-pound title in his first fight at that weight.
The fight ended with the sellout crowd of 16,200 at the MGM Grand Garden arena on its feet roaring and two fighters trading punches wildly at the final bell. They then stopped and embraced each other.
Mayweather was favored on one scorecard 116-112 and 115-113 on a second. De La Hoya was ahead 115-113 on the third scorecard. The Associated Press had Mayweather winning 116-112.
"It was easy work for me," Mayweather said. "He was rough and tough but he couldn't beat the best."
In the end, Mayweather was simply faster and more slippery in a bout where neither fighter managed to hurt the other and neither went down.
Still, De La Hoya did enough to impress at least one judge, and thought he did enough to win the fight.
"I landed the harder, crisper punches," De La Hoya said. "I felt when I landed my punches I could see I was hurting him. If I hadn't pressed the fight, there would be no fight."
Ringside punching stats heavily favored Mayweather, crediting him with landing 207 of 481 punches to 122 of 587 for De La Hoya.
Mayweather remained unbeaten in 38 fights and won a title in his fifth weight class, moving up from welterweight to challenge De La Hoya (38-5) in a fight that earned De La Hoya at least $25 million and Mayweather at least $10 million. The $19 million live gate was a record for the sport, and there were predictions the pay-per-view sales would make the fight boxing's richest ever.
