HE'S GOLDEN: De La Hoya triumphs

      Oscar De La Hoya used aggressiveness to overcome the slick boxing tactics of Pernell Whitaker on Saturday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.
      De La Hoya captured a unanimous decision over the showboating Whitaker to capture Whitaker's World Boxing Council welterweight championship before an announced crowd of 12,200.
      It was the fourth world championship in four weight divisions for De La Hoya, promoter Bob Arum's "Golden Boy," whose goal is to win world championships in six weight divisions.
      Judges Jerry Roth and Dalby Shirley scored it 116-110 for De La Hoya, and judge Chuck Giampa had it 115-111 for De La Hoya. All three judges are from Las Vegas.
      Whitaker, of Virginia Beach, Va., scored the fight's only knockdown by putting De La Hoya, of Whittier, Calif., down on one knee with a right uppercut in the ninth round.
      De La Hoya got right back up and frowned at referee Mills Lane's ruling of a knockdown.
      The gracious De La Hoya offered to give Whitaker a rematch before Whitaker asked for one.
      "Any time, any place," De La Hoya said. "I know I can do better. I feel unfulfilled."
      Although Whitaker constantly made De La Hoya miss with his elusive style, the judges felt De La Hoya landed enough punches in what they didn't see as a close fight.
      Both Shirley and Roth gave the last three rounds to De La Hoya, who closed as a 3 1/2-1 favorite at the Caesars Palace sports book.
      Whitaker juked, crouched, ducked and danced, making De La Hoya miss much of the time.
      "I think I got 10 out of 12 rounds," Whitaker said. "It was unbelievable. It was a shutout."
      But De La Hoya nailed Whitaker with enough lead right hands to impress the judges.
      Whitaker appeared to coast through the last round as if he had a lead and was willing to sit on it.
      "Of course," Whitaker said when he was asked if he won the fight. "One thing about it, the world saw it. As long as the world saw the fight ... ."
      Whitaker, 34, landed more punches, 232 of 582 (40 percent). De La Hoya landed 191 of 557 (34 percent).
      But De La Hoya landed twice as many power punches, 146 of 363 to Whitaker's 72 of 192.
      "I felt that Pernell Whitaker was not connecting his (power) punches,'' De La Hoya said. ''He had a nice jab, a real good jab. I give him credit for that."
      De La Hoya (24-0) also said Whitaker's southpaw style "intimidated" him.
      Whitaker (40-2-1) had a point deducted in the third round for a head butt.
      De La Hoya, the only U.S. boxing gold medal winner in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, received a $10 million purse, according to contracts filed with the Nevada Athletic Commission.
      Whitaker's contract with the commission called for $4 million.
      Although both fighters were 146 1/2 pounds at Friday afternoon's weigh-in, Whitaker weighed 157 pounds and De La Hoya 151 pounds when they were weighed again by the commission about two hours before the fight.
      De La Hoya had held the WBC super lightweight title he won from Julio Cesar Chavez and was moving up in weight to challenge Whitaker.
     
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