LAS VEGAS, Nevada, 7 June 2004 — Americans Bernard Hopkins and Oscar de la Hoya advanced to a Sept. 18 middleweight boxing showdown by capturing unanimous 12-round decisions here Saturday.

Hopkins retained the undisputed crown by defeating compatriot Robert Allen on judges’ scores of 119-107, 119-107 and 117-109, then had a bigger scare than any seen in the ring when the biggest payday of his career nearly vanished. Germany’s Felix Sturm lost a questionable decision to de la Hoya, with all judges awarding de la Hoya the final round to give the “Golden Boy” a 115-113 triumph on all three scorecards.

“My blood pressure went up. But I was confident de la Hoya would pull it off,” Hopkins said. “He showed he can pull out the last couple of rounds. He showed championship heart. The guy didn’t come here form Germany to lay down.” Sturm did not come to be robbed either, but he departed feeling that way.

“I was the tougher fighter. I was the smarter fighter. I was the better fighter. I won this fight,” Sturm said.

Hopkins, 39, rose to 44-2 with one drawn while Allen slid to 36-5 and saw his 13-fight win streak snapped. De la Hoya rose to 37-3, winning the lightly regarded World Boxing Organization crown while Sturm fell to 20-1.

Hopkins adopted a conservative style, not wanting to risk spoiling the de la Hoya fight and the $15 million it could bring him.

It was Hopkins’ 18th consecutive successful defense of a middleweight title.

Hopkins objected to having Joe Cortez serve as referee of the bout, but agreed Friday to have Cortez officiate the bout. Hopkins had threatened not to fight with Cortez in the ring but praised Cortez after the fight.

De la Hoya attacked Sturm from the opening bell, trading jabs and solid punches with the German throughout the round. De la Hoya threw 103 punches in his first middleweight round, the second-most punches of any round in his life.

Phillips Stops Bojorquez to Claim IBF Junior Middlewight Crown

In Joplin, Missouri, American Verno Phillips captured the International Boxing Federation junior middleweight crown, stopping replacement fighter Carlos Bojorquez of Mexico after the sixth round. Phillips won his seventh fight in a row and rose to 38-9 with one drawn with his 20th triumph inside the distance to claim the vacant crown, his first major world title in 16 years of fighting.