NEW YORK: Junior welterweight champion Amir Khan stopped former titleholder Paulie Malignaggi in the 11th round of a brutally efficient, one-sided fight Saturday to retain is WBA title. Using superior speed and crisp right hands, the former British Olympian made good on his promise to quiet the flamboyant Malignaggi, who was fighting just across the river from his home in Brooklyn.Malignaggi's face was red and swollen from the middle rounds on, and he had to lobby the ringside doctor before the 11th round just to let him continue. Khan (23-1, 17 KOs) backed Malignaggi against the ropes and threw a series of unanswered blows before referee Steve Smoger finally stepped between them at 1:25 of the round. Malignaggi (27-4) didn't argue with the decision, tapping his chest and congratulating Khan on the victory.
''He knows how to win rounds, man,'' Malignaggi said. ''He has a lot of ability.''
The crowd of about 5,000 inside Madison Square Garden was just as revved up before the fight, when a contingent of fans in the middle of the arena stood up and began waving two British flags flanking a Pakistani flag.
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