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LAS VEGAS -- Yonnhy Perez floored Joseph Agbeko in the
10th round and won a unanimous decision Saturday night to take the
International Boxing Federation bantamweight title in the first boxing match at
Treasure Island Hotel & Casino.
Perez, a Colombian who lives in California, had winning
scores of 117-110 on two judges' scorecards and 116-111 on the other to take
Agbeko's championship in the Ghana fighter's third defense.
Perez (20-0, 14 KOs) took control of the back-and-forth
match with a knockdown following an accidental head butt of Agbeko (27-2, 22
KOs) toward the end of the 10th round. Agbeko turned to referee Robert Byrd to
complain about the contact and Perez connected with a left hook for the
knockout.
"I didn't see whether it was a head butt or a punch,
therefore I had to rule it was from a punch," Byrd said.
With the momentum from the knockdown, Perez continued the
pressure to close the fight and take the final two rounds on all three
scorecards.
"All of the hard work and preparation paid
off," Perez said. "This is a dream come true. I felt that I was more
consistent, more active and pressed more throughout the fight."
The apparent head-butt was the turning point, Agbeko
said.
"He head-butted me in round 10 and I didn't think
that was far," Agbeko said. "I thought I was fighting well toward
that point. Perez seemed energized [because of the knockout] and I stayed the
same."
In the co-main event, Mexico's Antonio DeMarco dominated
Nicaragua's Jose Alfaro from the opening bell to capture the World Boxing
Council interim lightweight championship by technical knockout in the 10th
round.
Referee Joe Cortez stopped the fight at the 2:07 mark of
the round after DeMarco floored Alfaro twice. With DeMarco continuing the
pressure, Alfaro took a knee near his corner and Cortez stepped in to halt the
action.
DeMarco dropped to his knees and pounded his fists into
the canvas in celebration, clearly overcome with the emotion of winning his
first title.
"It's impossible to describe the feeling I have
inside me right now," the 23-year-old DiMarco said. "My lifelong
dream was to become the champion. This is the second happiest day of my life.
Only the birth of my daughter comes first."
DeMarco (23-1-1) was leading 89-82 on two judges' scorecards
and 90-81 on the other when the 12-round fight was called.
"He used his jab and distance better than I did
tonight. That was the difference that I could not overcome," said Alfaro,
a former World Boxing Association champion.
"I couldn't land my punches. I wanted to press him
with my right hand. I got a couple of them in but obviously not enough."
It was the first Las Vegas promotion by Don King in four
years. King has promoted or co-promoted 12 of the top 20 highest-grossing live
gates in Nevada.
King was joined by Mike Tyson, who was acknowledged
before the main event by the sellout crowd of 1,016 fans. He took pictures with
King and others inside the ring, and judged a post-fight Halloween costume
contest.
"I have gratitude in my life," Tyson said.
"I have taken a lot in my life and now I have to give back. I never
thought I would live to be 43 years old."
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