Boxing: Briggs seizes world heavyweight title

In the often bizarre and always entertaining world of heavyweight boxing, Shannon Briggs knocked out Sergei Lyakhovich in the 12th and last round to win the World Boxing Organisation title at Chase Field, Phoenix, on Saturday night.

Briggs, 34, last fought for the world heavyweight championship in 1998 when he was stopped by Lennox Lewis, and since then he has concentrated on beating unknown fighters, acting and his modelling career.

Lyakhovich, 30, was winning on the scorecard of all three judges before he was knocked out of the ring in the last minute of the fight. The end of his short reign means that Briggs is now the only American holder of one of the four world heavyweight belts.

In Las Vegas on Saturday night, Floyd Mayweather, won a world title at a fourth weight when he easily beat Argentina's Carlos Baldomir for the World Boxing Council welterweight title, though he was booed off for being so negative.

In Glasgow, Alex Arthur stopped the previously unbeaten Spaniard Sergio Palomo in the fifth round to retain his European super-featherweight title and Willie Limond won the Commonwealth lightweight title when he beat Ghana's Kpakpo Allotey on points.