Boxing: Baldomir keeps title

Argentina's Carlos Manuel Baldomir stopped Arturo Gatti in the ninth round in Atlantic City yesterday to retain his World Boxing Council welterweight title.

Baldomir, making his first defence of the title he claimed from Zab Judah on January 7, improved to 43-9-6 with 13 wins inside the distance.

He knocked Gatti down in the ninth with a big left hook, and when he sent him down again moments later the referee called a halt after 2 minutes 50 seconds of the round.

Canadian-born Gatti, who had been seeking to add another world title to his resume after stints as the International Boxing Federation junior lightweight champion and the WBC junior welterweight champion, fell to 40-8 with 31 knockouts.