Williams beats Margarito to the punch

In the first title fight of his eight-year career, Paul Williams was facing Antonio Margarito, a 13-year veteran looking for his eighth successful title defense.

Yet Williams never lost his poise.

Midway through the fight Saturday night at the Home Depot Center, Margarito made his anticipated charge, unleashing a barrage of punishing right hands, connecting solidly on Williams’ jaw, powerfully into Williams’ midsection and finally opening a cut over Williams’ left eye.

Yet Williams never lost his focus or determination.

And ultimately, when the final bell had sounded and the judges’ scorecards had been added up, it was Margarito who lost, with Williams (33-0, 24 knockouts) capturing the World Boxing Organization welterweight title with a unanimous decision.

Judge Thomas Miller scored it 116-112, and judges David Mendoza and Marty Sammon each had it 115-113.

Margarito insisted they all had it wrong.

“I think it was a robbery,” said the 29-year-old Margarito (34-5, one no contest, 24 knockouts), who had hoped to use the fight as a springboard to face World Boxing Assn. welterweight champion Miguel Cotto.

“Everyone in the arena knows I won the fight.”

Williams saw it differently.

“I didn’t think the fight was as close as a couple of the judges,” Williams said. “But it was not an easy fight. Margarito is a tough dude and I definitely got stunned.”

At 25, Williams would appear to have a bright future in the ring. He stands 6 feet 2, has a wiry frame, a southpaw approach, a dancing style, a good chin and the ability to attack effectively with both hands.

Williams used all of his weapons from the start Saturday night, attacking aggressively from the opening bell to dispel any idea he might be intimidated by his more seasoned opponent.

“The plan was to start fast and to put the early rounds in the bank, which I did,” Williams said.

“We knew that Margarito was a slow starter.”

Countered Margarito: “He threw more punches than I did, but I threw the harder punches.”

Margarito hit his peak in the 11th round, a round he dominated.

“In the later rounds, I knew I had to suck it up,” Williams said. “We knew Margarito would never quit. In a lot of ways, he was like a tractor the way he kept coming forward and that made it easy pickings.”

After the fight, promoter Bob Arum said he would now try to match Cotto against Shane Mosley.

The negotiations have just begun, but Williams served notice Saturday night that, when it comes to the welterweights, he needs to be included in the conversation.

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In an earlier fight, super-middleweight Andre Ward (13-0, 8) flattened Francisco Diaz (16-2, 8) with a left-right combination in the third round of a scheduled eight-rounder.

After falling beneath the ropes, Diaz struggled to his feet, but, when he was unable to steady himself, referee Raul Caiz Sr. stopped the bout with one second left in the round.

“That felt beautiful,” said Ward, a 2004 Olympic gold medalist, of the finishing punch. “It was like hitting a baseball on the sweet spot of the bat. I feel great and am definitely ready to step up to 10 rounds.”

In another preliminary fight, heavyweight Chris Arreola (21-0, 19) of Riverside stopped Derek Berry (12-9-1, 5) at 57 seconds in the first round of a scheduled 10-rounder. Berry went down under a flurry of punches, looking, indeed, like a fighter who has lost nine bouts.

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steve.springer@latimes.com