Boxing

Abraham wins vacated title

By wire services
Published December 11, 2005

LEIPZIG, Germany - Armenia's Arthur Abraham stopped Nigeria's Kingsley Ikeke in the fifth round to win the vacant IBF middleweight title on Saturday.

Abraham improved to 20-0 with 18 knockouts as he took the title vacated by Jermain Taylor. Ikeke, ranked second by the IBF, fell to 23-2.

"It was his fight, not mine - I couldn't stop him," Ikeke said.

Abraham had no trouble hitting the 6-foot-4 Nigerian. By the fourth round, he was taunting Ikeke, and Abraham's corner told him to stop showing off.

In the fifth, Abraham knocked Ikeke into the ropes with a left, and after several more shots the referee pulled him off Ikeke.

HEAVYWEIGHT: Danny Williams knocked down Audley Harrison in the 10th round and won a split decision in London to claim the vacant Commonwealth title.

Two of the three British judges gave the bout to Williams (34-5).

As the sellout crowd of 15,000 at London's ExCel Arena chanted "What a load of rubbish!" Williams dropped Harrison with a right hook to the head, and Harrison sat on the canvas before getting up and beating the count.

Williams failed to follow the knockdown, and Harrison countered with two punches to the chin.

"A loss doesn't ruin my career," Harrison (19-1) said.

KLITSCHKO: Newly retired heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko, 34, said he would run in Ukraine's parliamentary elections in March.

Klitschko made the announcement after being wooed by numerous political factions since his surprise retirement last month.

[Last modified December 11, 2005, 02:15:36]