Cloud win foils Woods title hopes
Sheffield's Clinton Woods failed in his bid to win a light-heavyweight world title for the third time as Tavoris Cloud took the vacant IBF belt. Cloud, 27, scored 116-112 on all three judges' scorecards in Florida to take his unbeaten record to 20-0 (18 KOs).
Woods, 37, (42-4-1, 24 KOs) had twice won the IBF belt but he could not score a first victory in the United States at the third attempt.
He was eventually well beaten by Cloud, the IBF's number one contender.
The American started at a furious pace but did little to trouble the Yorkshireman early on, and Woods found his jaw with a left hook just before the end of round two.
Woods' measured approach seemed to be designed to take Cloud, who had only previously gone the distance once in his pro career, into uncharted territory.
But his opponent showed no signs of slowing, and he had Woods pinned on the ropes in the seventh round before rocking him with a series of left hooks in the eighth.
emp_load.getEmpEmbeddedParams("emp_8228156"); Woods weathered the storm and scored with some well-chosen punches, but he was fast running out of time having lost so many of the previous rounds.
Cloud staggered Woods once more with a big left hand a minute into the 10th, and the Briton entered the final round seemingly way behind on the scorecards.
The big finish the former champion needed failed to materialise and, as the final bell sounded, there was only one credible victor as Cloud announced his arrival on the world stage.
Afterwards, Woods refused to be drawn on whether he will retire from boxing, insisting: "I'm not thinking about that at the moment. I'll go home and see what I'll do next.
"I have always said that I'd never go back to another level other than world title. I don't want to talk about retiring.
"To be honest, the thought of that upsets me more than losing to more world title, retiring from the sport I love. But I'll talk about it when I get home."
On the same card, Colombia's Juan Urango climbed off the canvas to stop Randall Bailey in the 11th round and retain his IBF light-welterweight crown.
Urango was dropped in the sixth round, barely beating the count, but he responded by sending Bailey down with a left to the head in the ninth.
The American got to his feet, but Urango continued his assault and floored him again. Bailey made it to the bell but was knocked down again in the 10th.
Urango got the technical knockout at 1:51 of the 11th, when referee Tommy Kimmons stopped the fight at the request of Bailey's trainer.
Date published :
29 Aug 2009 - 05:28:33
