Zou beats 'mini-Manny' to challenge belt

Chinese Olympic gold medallist boxer Zou Shiming knocked down Kwanpichit Onesongchaigym of Thailand three times Sunday at a 12-round flyweight contest, which earned him a world champion shot.

This was a final eliminator for the WBO world flyweight championship, making Zou mandatory challenger to title holder Juan Francisco Estrada of Mexico in a fight likely to take place in spring next year in Macau.

Zou, who won gold medals in the Beijing and London Olympics, dominated the fight most of the way, but his Thai opponent, dubbed "Mini-Manny", never stopped coming forward and the two engaged in some good exchanges late in the fight that had the sellout crowd cheering at the final bell. ' Fighting for only the sixth time as a pro, Zou was cut over his left eye by an apparent head butt in the middle rounds and had to deal with an opponent who tried everything he could to overcome a talent and strength advantage.

Zou's left eye was nearly swollen at the end of the bout and he looked worse than Kwanpichit, though he won by a lopsided margin on the three ringside scorecards.

Zou remained unbeaten as a pro in a fight that paid him 700,000 US dollars. Kwanpichit went down three times and was penalized for a low blow, and was warned for head butts as he tried to pull an upset. But he was beaten 119-106 on two scorecards and 120-103 on the third.

Promoters said that if Zou won, he would headline a Feb. 14 fight card in Macau in a 112-pound title bout, though it will probably now be later because his cut will need time to heal.

"I want to fight for the world title," Zou said. "I want to win it for China, do it right here."