Tarver decisions Woods for IBF title

TAMPA. Fla. – Round-by-round coverage of Antonio Tarver's IBF light heavyweight title victory of Clinton Woods on Saturday night. Official scores were 116-112, 117-111, 119-109, all for Tarver.

ROUND 1
A slow opening minute as neither man looks willing to take early risks. Midway through the round Tarver catches Woods on the chin with a left hand, not a meaningful shot but the best of a quiet start. Tarver let fly with three right hooks, all of which missed the target. Woods appears to have a slight nick over his right eye.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver

ROUND 2
A slight step up in pace in Round 2 but still a long way removed from the frenetic pace of the first light-heavyweight clash of the night, when Chad Dawson beat Glen Johnson in a unanimous decision. Tarver does not look in peak condition but Woods is wary of his dangerous left hand and is not prepared to over-stretch the action. A couple of nice body shots nick the round for the Englishman.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Woods

ROUND 3
Tarver unleashes a left uppercut a minute into the round and the home favorite starts to make some effort to up his workrate. Woods gets going towards the end of the round, catching his opponent with a short right while Tarver was off-balance. The crowd is flat – waiting for the action to start heating up.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver

ROUND 4
Tarver has clearly heard all about Woods' devastating uppercut and wants no part of it, ducking low whenever Woods reaches back. The small contingent of British fans are given some reason for cheer as their man stays on the front foot. Although he is unable to land any huge shots, his higher energy levels give Woods the round.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Woods

ROUND 5
Both men start to throw some more leather but for the first two minutes little of it makes any serious contact. Tarver's best shot was a left cross but there is not enough venom in the shot to stop Woods from advancing forwards with purpose. However, Woods' motion will count for nothing unless he can catch Tarver with a big uppercut or some heavy combinations.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver

ROUND 6
Woods begins the round aggressively and catches Tarver with a left hand but the momentum soon switches around. Woods seems to be having trouble breathing from his nose and is tagged with series of clubbing shots, including a left hand to the side of the face. The Brit tries to shrug the strike off but it found its target and Tarver comfortably takes the round.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver

ROUND 7
Woods is becoming increasingly frustrated as the referee allows Tarver to repeatedly turn his back on the action and duck far too low to avoid the uppercut. Now Tarver's selective shots are starting to penetrate and although his fitness levels do not look to be at their peak, he is taking of the contest.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver

ROUND 8
Tarver is moving and shaking around the ring and Woods is struggling to find the speed and reflexes needed to catch up to him. A left hand gave Woods some early confidence and sent Tarver even further into his shell. The crowd began to voice their displeasure at the Tarver's reluctance for a scrap, with some boos cascading down from the upper decks.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Woods

ROUND 9
Woods does enough to take the round with a steady assault as Tarver continues to backpedal repeatedly. A heavy body shot to the ribs from Woods midway through the round may have been on the wrong side of the judges but was a telling blow nonetheless. Tarver connected twice late as Woods ran out of steam – it was too little, too late.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Woods

ROUND 10
Tarver spends most of the round leaning in one direction or another – first of all he is on the ropes backing away from Woods' attack, then leaning on to his opponent after two shots hit their mark. Once more Tarver's best work comes in the final 10 seconds of the round, delivering a punishing left hand, but Tarver is showing nothing that will strike fear into the hearts of the light heavyweight division.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Woods

ROUND 11
Tarver finally springs into life, with a crushing left hand midway through the round and another heavy straight left in the final minute. But that effort has taken its toll and Woods comes back with some solid shots of his own. Tarver has shown glimpses of his talent but not the kind of consistency needed to prove he can still rule the division as he approaches his 40th year. But unless Woods can deliver a telling blow in the final round it looks like he will get over the line.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver

ROUND 12
Tarver comes out firing with a string of big shots and appears to have been saving all his energy up for this final burst. Woods looks spent now and although he tries to respond gamely, there is just not enough left in the tank.
Rogers scores it 10-9, Tarver