Holmes holds title

Press, 1 October 1979, Page 3

Holmes holds title

.!NZPA-Reuter Las Vegas’ I The unbeaten Larry; ! Holmes survived a knock-’ down on Saturday before I’stopping the 35-year-old’ ’Earnie Shavers in the’ ’ eleventh round to retain his! ’World Boxing Council' heavy-weight championship ’ ! at the Caesars Palace sports j pavilion, Las Vegas. ! The referee, Dave Pearl,’ stopped the bout two min-’ ! utes into the eleventh round a„ Holmes battered an ;

(almost exhausted Shavers at I will against the ropes. At j th' time, blood was streaming from a cut near Shavers’ ; right eye. i In his fourth successful | title defence, the 29-year-old j Holmes showed his mettle ■as a champion, getting up off the floor after being knocked down by a thunderous right cross from Shai vers in the seventh round. That he was able to survive the first knockdown was particularly remarkable. With less than a minute remaining in the seventh round, Shavers caught the champion with a tremendous right to the side of the head that sent Holmes crashing to the floor. Holmes was obviously dazed and wobbly as he struggled to his feet and was forced to take a mandatory eight count.

Somehow he managed to elude the onrushing Shavers as he swung wildly with his right trying to finish off Holmes.

! Holmes, revived after the | one-minute rest, came back I strongly in the eighth round. |He outboxed Shavers during ’the round, snapning the ’challenger’s head back with ■a flurrv of sharp left jabs, ! while Shavers missed about ’six roundhouse right-hand ’b'ows.

I With blood pouring from ! Shavers’ eve cut and the challenge’- virtually defenceless. the referee stooped the bout after two ’rmnutes of the eleventh iround had elapsed.