Boxing: Errol Spence Jr. Outslugs Shawn Porter to Unify Welterweight Titles

Here’s Errol Spence knocking Shawn Porter down in Rd. 11. #boxing #SpencePorter pic.twitter.com/D0kBjYfQCf

— Mick Akers (@mickakers) September 29, 2019

Errol Spence Jr. was stellar on Saturday night as he waged and won a memorable war with Shawn Porter to unify the welterweight championship in Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Spence Jr. (26-0, 21 KOs) tried to box from the outside and use his length and crushing punching power, but the shorter Porter continuously charged on the inside. The result was 12 rounds of sensational back-and-forth action that saw both men wobbled and fighting tooth and nail until the final bell.

Porter (30-3-1, 17 KOs) lured the 2012 Olympian into the close-quarter war he wanted, and he won several rounds in the contest. However, Spence Jr. repeatedly dug furious hooks to Porter’s body, which slowed him down as the fight wore on. And when Spence Jr. blasted “Showtime” with a crushing left hook on the jaw during an exchange in the 11th, Porter’s chances of winning flew out the window. Porter’s glove touched the canvas and while he survived the frame, he wasn’t the same in the final stanza, allowing Spence Jr. to coast -- sort of -- until the final bell.

The fight was as close as it was entertaining, but Spence walked out of the ring with his hand raised. While one ringside judge favored Porter 115-112, that score was offset by the other two who saw it 116-111 for “The Truth.” The win allowed Spence Jr. to not only retain his IBF welterweight crown, but snatch Porter’s WBC strap in the process.