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Caption: TITLE DEFENSE: Zab Judah, flanked by boxing promoter Don King, shows off his WBA, WBC and IBF belts after he defeated Cosme Rivera in their undisputed welterweight championship bout at the MGM Grand hotel-casino in Las Vegas. Judah (34-2, 25 KOs), who knocked Rivera (28-8-2) down just 23 seconds into the bout with a big left hand that landed squarely on his nose, won by knockout in the third round. The fight was on the undercard of the Felix Trinidad-Winky Wright middleweight fight, and it was the first defense of the titles Judah won by stopping Cory Spinks in February. "This was not a fight I picked. It was a mandatory [bout]," Judah said after the fight. "I want Oscar De La Hoya. I want to prove I am the best fighter in the world."

COPYRIGHT 2005 Johnson Publishing Co.
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