6 May 2012 Last updated at 06:55 GMT

Floyd Mayweather beats Miguel Cotto by unanimous decision

Floyd Mayweather held off Miguel Cotto to take the WBA super welterweight title on Saturday and maintain his undefeated record.

The two fighters went toe-to-toe for several rounds before Mayweather took control and won by a unanimous decision, with two judges scoring 117-111 in his favour and one 118-110.

"I had to fight hard, suck it up. He [was] no pushover," said Mayweather.

The victory extended Mayweather's run to 43-0 with 26 knockouts.

Mayweather was on the offensive from the outset, landing a number of fast right hands and quick jabs.

Cotto, though, was showing a willingness to engage Mayweather in the centre of the ring and his relentless pressure brought him some wins in the middle rounds.

That forced Mayweather to change tactics and he started landing fast right hands from long range.

Did you know?

Cotto has achieved more knockouts in his career than Mayweather (30 from 37 wins and three defeats)

The pair exchanged vicious punches in the 12th round but Mayweather was landing the better shots and his superior hand speed and solid defence proved enough to win the fight on all three judges' scorecards.

"You're a hell of a champion," Mayweather told Cotto in the ring afterwards. "You're the toughest guy I ever fought.

"He came to fight; he didn't just come to survive. I dug down and fought him back."

In the main undercard bout, rising Mexican star Saul Alvarez beat Shane Mosley to retain his WBC super welterweight title.

The 21-year-old Alvarez defended his title for the fourth consecutive time, winning by unanimous decision as two of the judges scored it 119-109 while the third had it 118-110.

Also related to this story

This story around the web