Alvarez closes out Cotto for WBC title

Canelo Alvarez started quick and finished quicker, which is why he left Mandalay Bay as the World Boxing Council middleweight champion Saturday night.

Alvarez showed a champion's spirit in getting the best of a determined Miguel Cotto, winning a 12-round unanimous decision before a sellout crowd of 11,274.

Judge Dave Moretti had Alvarez winning 119-109, Burt Clements scored it 118-110 and John McKaie had it 117-111 as Alvarez improved to 46-1-1. Cotto fell to 40-5.

"I have a lot of respect for Miguel," Alvarez said afterward. "He is a great champion and a great fighter.

"We knew going into this fight it would be a difficult journey, but I feel I was the faster and stronger fighter tonight. I wasn't hurt by his punches. I was fully prepared for what Cotto was going to do in the ring, whether that was take a defense stance or be the aggressor."

For Cotto, the disappointment was immense. He fought well and smart for the most part, but being 10 years older than Alvarez might have tipped the scales to the younger fighter. Alvarez appeared the stronger fighter and harder puncher.

"Wow," Cotto said upon hearing the decision. Then he turned to trainer Freddie Roach and said, "Are you OK? That's all that matters."

Roach said: "We thought it was much closer than the scorecards showed. It was a very competitive fight. Miguel's defense was unbelievable all night long."

Cotto, who made $15 million for the fight compared to $5 million for Alvarez, had been stripped of his title Tuesday by the WBC for his refusal to pay the $300,000 sanctioning fee.

Both fighters executed their game plans for the most part in the 155-pound catch weight fight. Alvarez wanted to come out more aggressively than in his previous big fights, while Cotto wanted to continue to outbox and move and not get hit by a huge shot, which is what Roach has helped him do.

But Alvarez, who closed as a 3-1 favorite at MGM Resorts sports books, was able to do the better work overall, working Cotto to the body, then looking to land to the head.

Cotto was able to do some good things early, as did Alvarez. While neither fighter was in any serious trouble during the first few rounds, Alvarez was starting to gain traction as he figured out his distance and spacing to start to get to Cotto.

Things really picked up in the eighth round. Alvarez landed a right to Cotto's body that appeared to hurt him, then two more hard rights that had the Puerto Rico veteran backpeddling. But Cotto showed his grit, answering with some sharp combinations to keep Alvarez at bay.

Cotto clearly knew he had to begin closing the gap, and it appeared he was doing so. However, in the final round, Alvarez fought as the more desperate fighter, taking it to Cotto, while Cotto attempted to answer back. It made for a thrilling conclusion that had the crowd on its feet and roaring for more.

All three judges were in agreement in giving Alvarez the final three rounds.

The final punch stats had Alvarez landing a high percentage (32 percent to 21 percent) and a 118-75 edge in power punches landed. While Cotto landed more jabs (54 to 37), it was Alvarez who was more effective as he connected on 20 percent of his jabs to Cotto's 14 percent.

Yes, there is a rematch clause in the contract for both fighters and whether it will be exercised might depend on whether Alvarez is willing to risk his newly won title in 2016 against Gennady Golovkin, the WBA and IBF champion.

"I'm not afraid of any fighter," Alvarez said. "GGG is a great fighter, and he is my friend. I have respect for him, but if we do fight, it's going to be at my weight class. I'm the champion. I don't have to do what he wants."

On the undercard, Francisco Vargas staged a stunning comeback, stopping Takashi Miura in the ninth round to win Miura's WBC super featherweight title.

Vargas (23-0-1) had dominated Miura (29-3-2) in the first round and looked like he might pull the early upset. But Miura gathered himself and took control. He had Vargas was in trouble in the fourth as Miura landed a big left. In the eighth, Miura was on the verge of putting Vargas away when the bell saved the undefeated Mexican.

But when the ninth started, it was all Vargas. He dropped Miura early in the round with a wrist right-left combination and Miura was holding on after getting to his feet. Referee Tony Weeks managed to separate the fighters and Vargas resumed the attack. He was all over Miura when Weeks stopped the fight at the 1:31 mark.

Also, super bantamweight Guillermo Rigondeaux had a successful return to the ring, as Roc Nation's newest fighter easily handled Drain Francisco by 10-round unanimous decision.

— Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him: @stevecarprj