ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Adrien Broner stopped Antonio DeMarco in the eighth round to take the WBC lightweight championship Saturday night at Boardwalk Hall.
Broner (25-0, 21 KOs) dominated from the outset, punishing DeMarco (28-3-1, 21 KOs) until DeMarco’s corner mercifully threw in the towel. Referee Benji Esteves stopped the fight at 1:49 of the round.
Broner, a 23-year-old Cincinnati native, uncorked a left uppercut that thudded against DeMarco’s jaw and sent the 27-year-old Mexican to one knee. While Broner danced his way into a neutral corner, Esteves moved in to start counting. DeMarco’s corner signaled him to stop the bout over DeMarco’s mild protest.
There was a minor controversy before the main event when DeMarco’s camp complained that Broner’s gloves were smaller. There was no scale to weigh the gloves in the dressing rooms — they are supposed to weigh eight ounces — so DeMarco was offered the opportunity to wear the same gloves as Broner and he agreed.
In the co-feature Detroit heavyweight Johanthon Banks (29-1-1, 19 KOs) stopped Seth Mitchell (25-1-1, 19 KOs) in the second round. Banks dropped the former Michigan State linebacker three times in the second, prompting referee Eddie Cotton to stop the fight at 2:38.
