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SPORTS Monday 17 deceMber 2018

Alvarez stops Fielding in 3rd round for 3rd division title

By BARRY WILNER Square Garden.
AP Sports Writer "My goal is to make good
NEW YORK (AP) — Canelo fights for the people, for the
Alvarez threw a Garden public, and to make sure
party Saturday night. A the name of Canelo Álva-
short and powerful fiesta. rez and of Mexico is held
Alvarez landed dozens of up high," Alvarez said.
body punches, knocking Fielding, 31, won the WBA
down Rocky Fielding four crown in July when he
times and stopping him in knocked out Tyron Zeuge in
the third round to earn his Germany in the fifth round.
third weight class title, tak- But the Englishman had
ing the WBA super middle- never faced anyone close
weight belt. to Canelo's class, and it
Coming off his close deci- showed.
sion against Gennady Go- "I never shied away from
lovkin three months ago the challenge," Fielding
to take the WBA and WBC said. "I lived the dream, I'll
middleweight titles, Alva- come back.
rez could hear chants of "He is strong and all that.
"Canelo! Canelo!" long be- It was the body shots, the
fore he entered the Madi- wind he took away. He
son Square Garden ring for placed the shots well and
the first time. Throughout a he caught me. I stood too
lengthy undercard, it was long to try to mix it with him England's Rocky Fielding takes a knee after being knocked down by Mexico's Canelo Alvarez,
clear who the sellout crowd when I shouldn't have. left, during the first round of a WBA super middleweight championship boxing match Saturday,
of 20,112 came to see and "The better man won to- Dec. 15, 2018, in New York. Alvarez stopped Fielding in the third round.
cheer. night." Associated Press
He delivered with power The fight ended with 22
and precision, landing 73 seconds remaining in the is to make the best fight outpointed Billy Dib in Au- 12-0, while Wahlstrom lost
punches, 35 to the body. third after two knockdowns whether they're for world gust for the belt, then de- for the first time in 24 fights.
"That was the plan in the in the round. titles or not," Alvarez said, fended by stopping James Super featherweight
gym, to hit the body and Fielding came to fight, but then turned his attention to Tennyson in October. Lamont Roach Jr. eas-
then move up, and that's was outmanned from the the Garden scene. He won 117-111 on all three ily outpointed Alberto Mer-
the result," Alvarez said outset. "I'm happy and I'm grateful judges' cards. cado, running his record to
through an interpreter. "You He couldn't block the bevy to be here. I hope this is the "Nowadays, I really have a 18-0-1. Roach controlled
see the result here." of body punches launched first of many." lot of anger built up, good the fight from the outset
Only eight other Mexican by Alvarez, who floored The fight card was anger though," he said, and took it easy late, which
fighters have held three Fielding with a left in the first streamed on DAZN, a ser- "and I just want to hurt ev- nearly cost him when Mer-
division titles. And Alvarez, round. vice that paid Alvarez $365 erybody when I'm in the cado (15-2-1) nailed him
28, says he is headed back Alvarez did it again with million for 11 fights. This was ring. I don't have no sym- with several hard shots in
to the 160-pound class he a right to the head and a quite a selling point for the pathy." the final round.
rules, with possibly a third left to the body late in the red-headed Mexican. Farmer is 28-4-1, while Fon- Rising lightweight Ryan
go with Golovkin in 2019. second round, and that On the undercard, Tevin seca is 22-2-1. Costa Rican Garcia had no trouble run-
The next fight, opponent brought down Fielding's Farmer started fast, then Fonseca's other loss came ning his record to 17-0 with
unknown, is set for Las Ve- hands enough to expose coasted to a unanimous in his only previous title 15 knockouts by stopping
gas in early May. the head. decision over Francisco fight, to Gervonta Davis for Braulio Rodriguez in the fifth
"Canelo will fight whoever So Alvarez used a huge Fonseca to hold onto his IBF the same crown in 2017. round. Rodriguez's reper-
is the best, no doubt about right lead to knock down super featherweight belt. Katie Taylor of Ireland won toire included more clown-
it," said his promoter, Oscar Fielding in the third round, Farmer lost to Kenichi Oga- a lopsided 10-round de- ing and low blows than
De La Hoya. and soon after finished it wa for the IBF title last year, cision over Finland's Eva fighting, and Garcia end-
If this was a one-off at 168 with a series of blows. but Ogawa then failed a Wahlstrom to keep her ed it with a sharp right, fol-
pounds, it was quite a show It really was no contest. drug test and the bout was IBF and WBA lightweight lowed by a series of head
in his debut at Madison "What I always want to do declared a no contest. He championships. She is now shots.q