Miguel Cotto v Oktay Urkal

Miguel Cotto successfully defended his WBA welterweight title against Oktay Urkal in front of his home crowd in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Saturday night.

Cotto dominated the fight from start to finish but couldn’t knock out the gutsy Urkal as he took blow after blow.

But in round 11, Urkal’s trainer Ulli Wegner climbed onto the ring apron and signalled a surrender with a white towel at a packed Roberto Clemente Coliseum.

The raucous crowd got what it came to see – hometown hero Cotto make the first defence of his welterweight title and do his part to set up a June 9 showdown with former undisputed champion Zab Judah at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

“I am going to get my cut taken care of, and I’m going to prepare for June,” Cotto said. “Judah is next. I have to prepare hard for him.”

Judah must win an April 13 bout to set up the bout