Will
03-19-2007, 01:57 AM
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Daniel Ponce De Leon of Mexico retained his WBO 122-pound title with a unanimous decision over Gerry Penalosa Saturday night.
Two judges scored it 119-109 for De Leon and the third had it 120-108. The heavily pro-De Leon crowd at Mandalay Bay jeered the decision.
"I'm really disappointed," said Penalosa, who dropped to 51-6-2. "I thought I won that fight. I want a rematch."
De Leon (31-1 with 28 knockouts) never landed his trademark knockout punch against the game Penalosa of the Phillipines.
"It was a very tough fight," De Leon said through a translator. "I feel I hurt him, but he has such great conditioning."
The 26-year-old De Leon had plenty of confidence coming into the fight. On Friday, he said he was "very sure" he was going to win, although he didn't say how.
But the 35-year-old Penalosa didn't go quietly. In the second round, he stunned De Leon with a right cross.
Penalosa, a former WBC champion, kept the powerful De Leon at bay with counterpunches, flicking lefts and rights into De Leon's face. As the fight wore on, the heavily pro-De Leon crowd began chanting derisively.
Near the end of the 11th round, De Leon cut Penalosa on the top of his head with an accidental head but. Penalosa bled heavily in the final round but never appeared to be in any trouble and was trading punches with De Leon until the final bell.
It was Penalosa's first loss since Dec. 20, 2002, when he lost a split decision to Masamori Tokuyama in Japan.
In another fight, Demetrius Hopkins (26-0-1, 10 KOs) of Philadelphia retained his USBA 140-pound belt with a unanimous decision over Steve Forbes of Las Vegas (32-5, nine KOs), who was a finalist in the boxing reality series "The Contender." The hometown crowd jeered the decision.
Two judges scored it 119-109 for De Leon and the third had it 120-108. The heavily pro-De Leon crowd at Mandalay Bay jeered the decision.
"I'm really disappointed," said Penalosa, who dropped to 51-6-2. "I thought I won that fight. I want a rematch."
De Leon (31-1 with 28 knockouts) never landed his trademark knockout punch against the game Penalosa of the Phillipines.
"It was a very tough fight," De Leon said through a translator. "I feel I hurt him, but he has such great conditioning."
The 26-year-old De Leon had plenty of confidence coming into the fight. On Friday, he said he was "very sure" he was going to win, although he didn't say how.
But the 35-year-old Penalosa didn't go quietly. In the second round, he stunned De Leon with a right cross.
Penalosa, a former WBC champion, kept the powerful De Leon at bay with counterpunches, flicking lefts and rights into De Leon's face. As the fight wore on, the heavily pro-De Leon crowd began chanting derisively.
Near the end of the 11th round, De Leon cut Penalosa on the top of his head with an accidental head but. Penalosa bled heavily in the final round but never appeared to be in any trouble and was trading punches with De Leon until the final bell.
It was Penalosa's first loss since Dec. 20, 2002, when he lost a split decision to Masamori Tokuyama in Japan.
In another fight, Demetrius Hopkins (26-0-1, 10 KOs) of Philadelphia retained his USBA 140-pound belt with a unanimous decision over Steve Forbes of Las Vegas (32-5, nine KOs), who was a finalist in the boxing reality series "The Contender." The hometown crowd jeered the decision.