Margarito Makes Quick Work of Gomez

LAS VEGAS, NV - Antonio Margarito stopped Manuel Gomez just 74 seconds into the first round Saturday night to retain the WBO welterweight title.

Margarito improved to 33-4, including 25 knockouts, by hitting Gomez with a series of powerful right hands.

Margarito landed a straight right to Gomez cheek that sent Gomez crashing back to the ropes. He followed with a windmill right and then, after missing a left, came back with another powerful right that put Gomez down.

Gomez fell face-first and spit out his mouthpiece. Referee Richard Steele didn't bother to finish the count, which enraged Gomez. He got up and shoved the referee and kicked a corner pad in a protest that was to no avail.

Margarito is chasing a bout with Floyd Mayweather Jr., former welterweight champion Zab Judah or Shane Mosley. He promised to win impressively to boost his case and did exactly that.

"I laid the wood on him," Margarito said. "I win my fights in the gym. I train so hard. We knew Gomez was going to come with everything. If Floyd doesn't recognize me now, I proved myself with my punches tonight. He has to recognize me as one of the worlds great welterweights."

In the other championship fight on the card, former U.S. Olympian Brian Viloria outpointed Jose Antonio Aguirre to retain his WBC light flyweight championship.

Viloria spent much of the night fighting against the ropes as he was content to let Aguirre move forward. However, Aguirre's offence vanished in the second half of the fight, allowing the champion to pull away.

Viloria, who won the title with a first-round knockout of Eric Ortiz on Sept. 10, picked up the pace after being urged by trainer Freddie Roach to go to the body.

"I need tough fights. I need tough rounds," Viloria said after improving to 19-0. "He did his homework and it was a great battle. He took a lot of my punches."

Aguirre, who dropped to 33-5-1, had been knocked out in his last two fights. He seemed to hurt Viloria in the second round, landing a hard overhand right that backed the champion into a neutral corner and then following with a right to the body.

Viloria turned the fight around by getting off the ropes. He hit Aguirre with a pair of hard right hands to start the seventh, the began a pattern that lasted the rest of the fight.

Sonny Banerjee
Editor-in-chief

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