Timothy Bradley survives chaotic finish to claim WBO welterweight belt against Jessie Vargas
Timothy Bradley got rocked in the final minute and survived a confusing finish to beat Jessie Vargas by unanimous decision, claiming the interim WBO welterweight title.
Timothy Bradley got rocked in the final minute and survived a confusing finish to beat Jessie Vargas by unanimous decision, claiming the interim WBO welterweight title.
Bradley (32-1-1) controlled most of his bout against the previously unbeaten Vargas, but the former two-division champion was hurt by a hard right that nearly knocked him down. The fight went on as Bradley recovered somewhat, but referee Pat Russell apparently stopped the fight 10 seconds early, thinking the 10-second warning was the bell to end the bout.
I don't have to defend anything. He landed a great shot, he hurt me, but I would have finished. Come on, I survived Provodnikov
Bradley won 117-111, 116-112 and 115-112 on the scorecards, bouncing back from a winless 2014 - but not before a wild scare at the end.
Russell appeared to be deciding that the bout was over by stoppage when he stepped in, and Vargas' corner went into a wild celebration. Carl Moretti, the vice-president of Bradley promoter Top Rank, went up to Russell immediately to find out what happened, and Russell said he thought the 10-second warning was the bell to end the fight.
The veteran referee was booed by the StubHub Centre fans. Bradley acknowledged he was hurt by the overhand right, but said he would have survived the final 10 seconds.
The bout was Bradley's first fight at the famed outdoor ring south of Los Angeles since his 2013 brawl with Ruslan Provodnikov in which he overcame a concussion from the first round and survived a knockdown in the closing seconds to win a unanimous decision.