“Bad” Chad Dawson cuts down The Cobra

NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (Greater New Haven Athletic Center) – “Bad” Chad Dawson, 19-0, 1 NC, (14 KOs), New Haven, 166¼, scored an 11th round knockout over the usually difficult Ian “The Cobra” Gardner, 19-3 (7 KOs), Brockton, Mass. 163, to win the vacant NABO super middleweight title, in a scheduled 12 Friday night. Each round from opening bell through round seven was a virtual repeat as the focused Dawson beat Gardner to the punch consistently. His stalking style never allowed the wild-swinging Gardner to put together a single string of effective punches.