On Saturday, 20th April 2002, Jose Luis Castillo made the 4th defense of his WBC Lightweight Title at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. In the opposite corner was Floyd Mayweather Jr. The challenger was moving up from the 130-pound division where he held the WBC title. Mayweather Jr entered the bout as a 4-1 favorite. The MGM Grand saw a crowd of 6,920 in attendance for this match, with Mayweather earning $2.2 million and Castillo receiving $1.1 million for their participation.
The fight began with Mayweather keeping the match on the outside and successfully outboxing Castillo in the early rounds. All three judges awarded Mayweather the first four rounds. However, Mayweather experienced difficulty as he complained about his left shoulder to his corner between rounds, later revealing that he injured it during his last day of training.
Despite Mayweather's strong start, Castillo managed to catch up in the sixth and seventh rounds, winning both on all three scorecards. Castillo's strategy involved getting closer to Mayweather and landing powerful shots to the body and head, which proved effective during these rounds.
In the eighth round, referee Vic Drakulich took a point away from Castillo for hitting on the break. As the fight continued into the tenth round, Drakulich deducted a point from Mayweather for using his elbows, further intensifying the contest between the two fighters.
The match concluded with a controversial decision that left the crowd booing. Mayweather was declared the winner, a decision that has been debated in the boxing community since the fight took place.
