El Nino de Oro Linares TKOs Larios, wins WBC featherweight interim title

2007年07月22日13時21分

LAS VEGAS, NEV. - July 21 – Undefeated Jorge Linares of Venezuela, displaying his blinding combinations from various angles, scored a 10th-round stoppage over veteran Oscar Larios of Mexico to win the World Boxing Council (WBC) featherweight interim title on Saturday in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Fighting at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, the 21-year-old Linares, who is fighting out of Japan’s Teiken Gym, punished Larios, a former WBC super bantamweight champion, many times with rapid left-right combinations to the head and body.
After weathering Larios' brief rally in the fifth round, Linares, who is nicknamed "El Nino de Oro," began sapping the Mexican's strength with wicked body shots and finally decked Larios in the 10th round with a sizzling right to the head and follow-up combination blows.
While the game Mexican struggled to his feet, he appeared severely dazed, which forced American referee Vic Drakulich to call a halt to the fight 2 minutes, 37 seconds into the round of the scheduled 12-rounder.
With the victory, Linares, WBC’s second-ranked contender, extended his unbeaten streak to 24 wins, including 15 KOs, since making his debut in Japan five years ago, while the top-ranked Larios, 30, fell to 59-6-1 with 37 KOs.
Seven world champions, including Linares' compatriot and World Boxing Association super featherweight ruler Edwin Valero, are fighting out of Japanese gyms.
The interim title fight was called because champion Chi In Jin of South Korea refused to defend his title against Larios.