Vargas Takes Campas’ Title on TKO

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. —  When Fernando Vargas said the more experienced Yory Boy Campas was made to order for him, he wasn’t being just a wisecracking 21-year-old.

“A lot of people felt I couldn’t do it,” Oxnard’s Vargas said after winning the International Boxing Federation junior-middleweight championship Saturday night. “I proved them wrong.”

Vargas, fighting as a pro for the 15th time, pounded Campas into submission after seven rounds of his 75th fight.

Vargas maintained before the fight that Campas would be easy to hit.

“Campas is like an old car,” Vargas said. “It looks good from the outside but inside it’s got a million miles on it.”

According to a CompuBox punch count, Vargas landed 202 of 403 punches while Campas connected on 76 of 259.

One judge had Vargas ahead by six points and the other two had him ahead by four.

Vargas pounded Campas around the ring in the seventh round and, at the end, the 27-year-old champion from Mexico, blood pouring from a broken nose and badly cut upper lip, told his corner he had had enough.

Vargas hurt Campas badly with an eight-punch barrage in the middle of the seventh round. Then he landed three or four other combinations, twice knocking out Campas’ mouthpiece.

At the end of the round, Campas knew his title was gone after only his third loss against 72 victories. He had 62 knockouts.

Vargas, 15-0, all by knockout, earned $180,000 and put himself into position for much bigger paydays. Campas earned about $450,000.

Both fighters weighed 151 pounds.

The fight preceded a 10-round lightweight war between Ivan Robinson and Arturo Gatti, which Robinson won by a unanimous decision.

“I thought the first fight was better,” said Robinson, who had beaten Gatti on a split decision on Aug. 22.

The contract weight limit for the fight was 136 pounds and Gatti (29-4, 24 knockouts) weighed in officially at 135. Robinson (20-7-2, 10 knockouts) weighed 133 3/4. At fight time, however, Gatti weighed 150 and Robinson 145.

“I started too late,” said Gatti, a former IBF junior-lightweight champion who lost his third consecutive fight. He also said, “I will fight again.”