Fighting in front of one of the largest crowds in the sport's history - 45,000 - the unbeaten Oscar de la Hoya stopped Patrick Charpentier of France in the third round at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, to retain his World Boxing Council welterweight title.

The 25-year-old American, apparently fully recovered from a torn cartilage in his left wrist, floored the hapless challenger three times in the round before the referee Lawrence Cole stepped in. De la Hoya has now won all his 28 professional fights, 23 of them by the knockout route.