Lacy Left Hooks his Way through Reid

TAMPA, FL - Jeff Lacy successfully defended his IBF super middleweight title, knocking down Robin Reid four times before the challenger's corner stopped the fight after the seventh round.

Spurred on by a hometown crowd of 15,056 chanting "Lacy! Lacy! Lacy!,'' the 28-year-old champion dominated the fight from the start and dropped Reid to the canvas twice in the fifth and once in the sixth and seventh rounds - the first knockdowns of the British fighter's career.

Reid's corner stopped it after Lacy hurt the former WBC super middleweight champ with a flurry of punches, then landed an uppercut that sent the challenger to his knees with about 25 seconds left in the seventh.

Reid looked to his handlers before climbing to his feet and finishing the round, holding off Lacy by lunging forward and grabbing the champion's legs.

Lacy improved to 20-0 (16KOs) and also moved a step closer to a possible unification bout with WBO champion Joe Calzaghe later this year in Wales.

The bout at the St. Pete Times Forum was the first major fight in Tampa since Roy Jones Jr. fought Derrick Harmon at the same arena in 2001. It also was Lacy's first before hometown fans since the native of nearby St. Petersburg turned pro after the 2000 Olympics.

Reid, of England, is 38-5-1, with four of his losses coming in title fights.

During the days leading up to the fight, the challenger complained about a lack of respect from the Lacy camp, which went as far as to present him with a T-shirt that proclaimed the 34-year-old traveled all the way to the United States "and all I got was knocked out by Jeff Lacy!''

Reid countered by showing up at Friday's weigh-in and giving the champion a plaque, attached to a belt, and bearing the words: "This Is The Only Belt You Are Taking Home Lacy.''

Lacy won the vacant IBF title with an eighth-round TKO of Syd Vanderpool last October and has successfully defended the crown three times.

Karl Foster
East Coast Correspondent

Information from other publications and wire services was used in the compilation of this report.