Mendez made the second defense of his 130-pound world title against Barthelemy on Jan. 3 at the Target Center in Minneapolis and got dropped late in the second round, then knocked out moments later. Although Barthelemy's knockout punches were thrown just after the bell rang to end the round -- an accidental foul -- referee Pete Podgorski counted Mendez out and declared Barthelemy the winner and new titleholder.
