Golovkin retains titles in thrilling draw with Alvarez
and engaged theALA warrior in a brawl until the final bell.
Italian judge Carl Zappia scored the bout 115-113 for Budler but judges Takeo Harada of Japan and Glenn Trowbridge of Las Vegas has it 117-110 and 115-112, respectively, for Melindo, thus, the split verdict.
“I cant hardly see because of the blood in my eyes. I relied on my instinct to survive and score that knockdown in the last round,” said Melindo. “He (Budler) was tough and has power but It didn't hurt me. He was very aggressive but careless.”
Indeeed, it was a breathtaking triumph for Melindo, who nearly lost his title on the scales after weighing 1.4 pounds over the regulatory weight limit during last Friday's official weigh-in.
Bloodied and exhausted, Melindo's efforts weren't left unnoticed.
ALA Promotions President and CEO MichaelAldeguer was all praise for his ward, who will make his second defense in February next year.
“No question, Melindo showed heart. We expected this to be a very tough fight for him and he proved to us that he is indeed a real world champion,” said Aldeguer. “We will see him fight against in February against an undetermined mandatory challenger. For now, we will let him rest and enjoy this win.”
In the supporting bout, Jonas‘Zorro’Sultan(14-3,9KOs) stunned former two-division champ Johnriel ‘Quadro’ Alas Casimero (24-4, 15KOs) with a lopsided unanimous decision in their IBF junior bantamweight title eliminator.
Not only did Sultan dictate the pace of the match from start to finish, he also landed the cleaner and solid punches compared to the passive Casimero. The official scores were 117-111, 116-112 and 115113 all for Sultan, who earns a mandatory shot at IBF super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas in what could be the first all-Filipino world championship in nearly a century.
In the other results, Jason ‘El Niño’ Pagara (40-2-1,
LAS VEGAS — Gennady Golovkin retained his three world middleweight titles Saturday, fighting to a draw with Mexican star Canelo Alvarez in a showdown for middleweight supremacy that lived up the hype.
The 35-year-old Golovkin, making his Las Vegas debut, kept hold of the World Boxing Council, World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation belts in front of a crowd of 22,358 at the T-Mobile Arena.
Judge Dave Moretti scored the tense 25KOs) fought to a split draw with Kenyan James ‘Onyi’ Onyango (23-11-2, 19KOs), while 'King' Arthur Villanueva (31-2, 17KOs) stopped Richie Mepranum (31-7, 8KOs) i`n round four. battle 114-114. Dan Trella saw it 115-113 for Golovkin but Adalaide Byrd had it one-sided, 118110, for Alvarez.
Byrd's lopsided score didn't reflect the explosive drama of a bout in which Golovkin moved forward aggressively while Alvarez was the counter-puncher with fast hands.
"This was a real drama show," Golovkin said. "I want to thank all my fans for supporting me.
"Of course I want the rematch. This was a real fight."
Asked if he thought he won, Golovkin said, "Look I still have the belts and I am still the champion."
The baby-faced champion with the steel jaw is considered one of the fittest athletes in boxing, but Alvarez was also well-prepared for a fight which both needed to validate their places in history.
Golovkin won most of the early rounds but then got hammered a few times with Alvarez's uppercuts and right hands and seemed to be the more tired of the two near the end.