Savarese proves no problem for Holyfield

Evander Holyfield outworked and outclassed Lou Savarese on Saturday night in El Paso, winning a 10-round unanimous decision to remain undefeated in his latest comeback.

Holyfield, the 44-year-old former heavyweight champion, started and ended the fight with a hard left to the head of the 41-year-old Savarese. In between, Holyfield was in control.

The judges scored it 98-90, 99-87 and 96-91.

Savarese, a former title contender himself, held his own for the first eight rounds before being knocked down with a hard left to the chin.

Holyfield (42-8-2) knocked Savarese (46-7) down again in the 10th, with Savarese looking as though he was hoping to just stay upright.

Holyfield came in weighing 219 pounds, giving Savarese a 23-pound advantage that wasn’t all that tough to overcome.

“Lou hurt me with an uppercut [in the third], but I got away from the next one,” Holyfield said.

Holyfield said after a quick try at fighting the taller Savarese on the inside, he moved to the outside and did his best to land some quick, hard left jabs.

It was Holyfield’s fourth bout since returning to boxing after a two-year layoff. His goal is to win an unprecedented fifth heavyweight title and unify the belts before retiring for good.

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Felix Sturm retained his World Boxing Assn. middleweight title with a unanimous decision over Noe Tulio Gonzalez Alcoba at Stuttgart, Germany.

Sturm, who raised his record to 28-2 with 12 knockouts, was fighting only two months after regaining the title with a decision over Javier Castillejo. Alcoba lost his first fight after 14 wins.

Alcoba kept coming forward, trying to shake the champion with body blows. But Sturm blocked the punches with his arms and hands, rarely giving Alcoba an opening and countering with left and right hooks and crosses.

SAILING

Alinghi increases America’s Cup lead

Alinghi moved to within one win of retaining the America’s Cup after rallying to beat Team New Zealand at Valencia, Spain.

The Swiss boat surged ahead of the Kiwis following a tacking duel up the third leg before holding off the challengers on the final downwind lap for a 28-second win and a 4-2 series lead.

Alinghi can clinch the best-of-nine series with a victory in today’s seventh race.

Only three times in the 156-year history of the Cup has a series been this close. Emirates Team New Zealand needs to win the final three races to take the Auld Mug for the third time.

DISTANCE RUNNING

Marathoner Salazar hospitalized

Former marathon champion Alberto Salazar collapsed at the Nike World campus in Portland, Ore., and had to be hospitalized because of a heart problem.

According to a news release from Providence St. Vincent Medical Center, Salazar did not have a heart attack. But the 48-year-old did have to have a stent inserted to open up an artery. Hospital officials said additional tests are being conducted to assess Salazar’s health.

Salazar was awake and alert when he arrived at the hospital. He was being treated in the cardiac-care unit and was in serious condition. The hospital said he was groggy, and had been visited by family.

Salazar won three consecutive New York City marathons and a 1982 Boston Marathon. He has set six U.S. records and one world record. He is a longtime Nike employee and consultant who trains elite distance runners.

GYMNASTICS

Horton wins all-around title

Jonathan Horton won the all-around title at a men’s gymnastics meet at Kiev, Ukraine, between the United States, Russia and Ukraine.

Horton defeated 2007 European all-around champion Maxim Deviatovski of Russia for the individual title. Horton’s victory offset the American team’s third-place finish in the team competition.

The meet was considered important because many of the best American men were there and it was a rare chance to compete in an international finals-style event -- in which three gymnasts go and all three of their scores count -- similar to what they’ll face at world championships in August.

Last year, the U.S. was 13th at the championships. This year, the team must be in the top 12 to qualify a full team to next year’s Beijing Olympics.

ARENA FOOTBALL

Nagy leads Columbus past Tampa Bay

Matt Nagy, who passed for five touchdowns, scored with seven seconds left to give the Columbus Destroyers a 56-55 victory over the host Tampa Bay Storm in the first round of the Arena League playoffs.

The Storm’s Seth Marler missed a 56-yard field-goal attempt with three seconds left. He earlier missed an extra-point try after Tampa Bay took a 55-49 lead with a minute left. Brett Dietz passed for 315 yards and six touchdowns for the Storm.

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John Dutton passed for 253 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Colorado Crush to a 49-42 victory over the host Kansas City Brigade.

Damian Harrell had eight catches for 106 yards and three touchdowns for the Crush. Kansas City’s Raymond Philyaw completed 36 of 52 passes for 321 yards and four touchdowns.

COLLEGE BASEBALL

Price wins Golden Spikes Award

Vanderbilt pitcher David Price won the Golden Spikes Award as the nation’s best amateur player. Price, the first player picked in the draft, by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, finished his junior season with an 11-1 record and a 2.63 earned-run average.