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Pitalua looks to add title to résumé

 

Mexico's Antonio Pitalua will battle against Wilfredo Negron at Miccosukee Resort & Gaming on Friday night.
Mexico's Antonio Pitalua will battle against Wilfredo Negron at Miccosukee Resort & Gaming on Friday night.
HECTOR GABINO / EL NUEVO HERALD

sperez@MiamiHerald.com

Antonio Pitalua has made a habit of collecting regional title belts during his 18-year boxing career. In fact, Pitalua proudly displays the 11 belts at his home in Mexico.

On Friday night, Pitalua will seek another belt at Miccosukee Resort and Gaming. Pitalua will face Puerto Rico's Wilfredo Negron for a regional welterweight title in the main event of an announced eight-bout card.

``I am proud of all the belts; it reminds me of the many accomplishments in my career,'' Pitalua said at a news conference Wednesday.

Pitalua (47-4, 41 KOs) also knows that defeating Negron could lead to a coveted, yet elusive, piece of hardware missing from his collection. Unsuccessful in a lightweight title bid against Edwin Valero earlier this year, Pitalua still craves a world championship belt.

``The urge to capture a world title keeps me going,'' Pitalua, 39, said.

Pitalua was scheduled to face Miami resident and former world super-lightweight champion Diobelys Hurtado on Friday, but Hurtado sustained a hip injury while running two weeks ago. Negron (26-12-1, 19 KOs) has six previous South Florida fights, with two at Miccosukee in 2002 and '04.

Pitalua had not fought at Miccosukee until he faced Jose Reyes on Aug. 14. Pitalua made an immediate impression on local fight fans, when he stopped Reyes with a one-punch knockout. The straight right to Reyes' chin, which ended the fight in the sixth round, became an immediate candidate for knockout of the year.

``That knockout proved to me that I still matter,'' Pitalua said. ``Because of my age, many people think I am done as a fighter. But I still feel young and the knockout has given me extra motivation to win a world title.''

WOMEN'S SOCCER

Duke 4, UM 0: Beverly Goebel had five shots and Paulelett Ricks-Chamber and Julianne Rickers had two each for visiting UM (7-7-0, 2-3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).

VOLLEYBALL

Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras def. Barry 16-25, 27-25, 20-25, 25-19, 15-8: Julia Teixiera had 19 kills, Libby Walter 40 assists and Spenser Rigg 19 digs for host Barry.

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