The King held court in his American debut.
Arthur Abraham recorded a fourth-round technical knockout over
Edison Miranda to retain his IBF middleweight title on Saturday night.
In his first fight on American soil, Abraham (27-0, 22 KOs) overcame
a pro-Miranda crowd to drop the challenger three times in the third
round.
The German scored the first knockdown with a right hand, then sent
Miranda (30-3, 26 KOs) to the canvas with blistering left hands on the
other two knockdowns.
Saturday’s bout marked the second time that he defeated Miranda.
Abraham had his jaw broken - with blood flowing from his gaping mouth
for the last seven rounds - yet earned a courageous 12-round unanimous
decision over Miranda in Germany in 2006.
With his latest win, the
man nicknamed “King” likely set himself up for a fight with Kelly
Pavlik, recognized as the best middleweight in the world.
The undercard was highlighted by the IBF world title elimination
bout, which saw Mexican Raul Marquez (42-3, 29 KOs) earn a title shot
with a unanimous decision over previously undefeated middleweight
Giovanni Lorenzo (26-1, 18 KOs).
Marquez, who overcame a severe cut over his right eye in the 10th
round, was able to survive a vicious headbutt from Lorenzo in the same
round. Lorenzo was deducted for the infraction, and Marquez went on to
win by scores of 114-113 across the board.
