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McCallum wins fight, but not title

 
Published March 5, 1994|Updated Oct. 6, 2005

Mike McCallum didn't win a title, but he left no doubt who won the fight.

McCallum stopped an outclassed Randall Yonker in the fifth round of a scheduled 12-round light heavyweight fight Friday night in a performance that belied both his age and the week he was given to prepare.

The 37-year-old former two-time champion, however, didn't get the interim WBC title he had been promised with a win over the No.

1 contender, thanks to a court order obtained by promoter Dan Duva.

Duva's court order, obtained on behalf of Edgerton Marcus of Canada, who he claimed was the rightful contender for the title, left McCallum and Yonker fighting for money and pride.

Promoter Don King had billed the fight as for the WBC interim 175-pound title, with the winner meeting injured WBC champion Jeff Harding of Australia next.

McCallum, 175, used his superior boxing experience and a dominating left jab to control the bout from the opening bell.

Midway through the round, McCallum hook rocked Yonker, 174, of Mobile, Ala., and he went to the ropes, where McCallum landed two lefts and a final hook that put Yonker on one knee. Yonker was up at five, but McCallum pursued him into the ropes, where he was pummeled. Referee Joe Cortez waved the fight to a close at 2:55 of the fifth round.

TONIGHT

Who: Oscar de la Hoya (11-0, 10 KOs) vs. Jimmi Bredahl (16-0, 5 KOs).

On the line: Bredahl's WBO junior lightweight championship.

Where: 10 p.m., Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles.

Paydays: De la Hoya $500,000; Bredahl $50,000.

Also on the card: IBF super-middleweight champion James Toney (41-0-2, 27 KOs) defends against top-ranked contender Tim Littles (24-0, 15 KOs).