Super bantamweight champion Lopez stops Lontchi

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Undefeated Juan Manuel Lopez of Puerto Rico retained his WBO super bantamweight title when challenger Oliver Lontchi quit after the ninth round of their scheduled 12-round contest in Atlantic City late on Saturday.

Lopez, who improved to 26-0, knocked the Canadian-based Lontchi down with right-hand shots in the second and ninth rounds. Lontchi, 26, could not recover from a crunching body blow and his corner threw in the towel before the 10th.

"Lontchi was real awkward and hard to fight," Lopez, 25, told reporters. "Once I got the body shots in, it was over."

Cameroon-born Lontchi was behind 89-80 on all three cards.