Chris Arreola vs. Brian Minto: Round By Round

World Championship Boxing is on the air once again, coming to us from the smaller upstairs ballroom at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall. Paul Williams headlines tonight against the tricky Sergio Martinez, but first we've got heavyweight action.

Chris Arreola will attempt to shake off his loss to Vitali Klitschko as he takes on Brian Minto. Jim Lampley and Max Kellerman talk over the heavyweight division to lead off the show.

A video package shows highlights of Arreola's defeat, and he talks about handling the defeat and what he's doing to come back strong. Lampley mentions that Chris weighed in 12 pounds heavier than he did against Vitali, which isn't necessarily a good sign. Emanuel Steward agrees.

The tale of the tape shows Arreola is over four inches taller and about 47 pounds heavier than Minto, who is also older.

Minto heads to the ring to "Taking Care of Business." He is 34-2 with 21 KOs, though the HBO crew leaves no doubts that he's there strictly as an opponent.

Arreola walks out to "My Time" by Fabolous. He is 27-1 with 24 KOs and a heavy favorite to add another one to that total tonight.

Jimmy Lennon Jr. does the introductions and we're set for a scheduled 10 rounds, though I'd be quite surprised if it goes the distance.

Round 1

Minto tries to jab as Arreola bides his time. More jabs from both fighters. Minto comes in and is knocked off balance by a right hand. Arreola comes out on top in a brief exchange. Nice right hand over the top by Chris. Minto does have decent hand speed. Sneaky right hand by Minto in the final 20 seconds.

Franchise: 10-9 Arreola
Uatu: 10-9 Arreola
Spartan117: 10-9 Arreola

Round 2

Arreola tries to turn up the pace early on. Minto isn;t backing down and comes forward behind a jab and some hooks. Arreola scores with a hard left hook. Two-punch combo by Minto and a counter right. Both men land right hands on the inside. Minto eats a few left hands as they trade, and blood is coming from somewhere near his right eye.

Franchise: 10-9 Arreola
Uatu: 10-9 Arreola
Spartan117: 10-9 Minto

Round 3

Both of Minto's eyes are showing some swelling now. He gets clocked by a right hand near the back of his head as he jumps in. Minto ducks down low and tries some uppercuts. One-two upstairs by Arreola. They stand and trade again, then clinch. Minto works jabs and fights pretty evenly for the rest of the round.

Franchise: 10-9 Arreola
Uatu: 10-9 Arreola
Spartan117: 10-9 Arreola

Round 4

Minto lands the first combination; he's certainly giving it his all. He comes forward behind a three-punch combo and scores with a right uppercut along the ropes. Arreola smacks Minto with a big right hand that sends him down. Minto beats the count and he's back up. He bulls his way forward and the crowd loves it. Minto falls as he tries to tackle Arreola. They stand and trade and Minto gets plastered with multiple shots along the ropes. He goes down and gets back up at nine, but he's clearly woozy and the referee stops the fight.

The winner by TKO at 2:40 of Round 4, Chris "The Nightmare" Arreola.

Kellerman hits the ring to talk to Arreola, who calls Minto a "tough motherfucker." He seemed to enjoy the fight.

Arreola thinks he's still a top-10 heavyweight. He wants to stay busy and fight again within the next three months.

Should we leave him alone about the weight? Arreola admits that he's heavy and likes to eat, but he comes in ready to fight.

Posted by The Franchise