Sunday 23 November 2014 01:59, UK
Jamie McDonnell was forced to dig deep before retaining his WBA bantamweight title with a 10th round stoppage win over Javier Chacon.
The Doncaster man was troubled by a fiery challenger, but his steady pressure appeared to take its toll on Chacon, who was forced out of the fight by a dislocated shoulder.
This victory means the 28-year-old can look ahead to a unification clash against WBO champion Tomoki Kameda next year.
McDonnell stuck out his stiff jab in the first round, probing the defences of Chacon, who patiently watched for openings.
There was more aggression from the South American in the second as he forced the Englishman back with body shots, but McDonnell stalled Chacon’s charge by rattling his ribs in the third.
For the first time McDonnell was on the front foot and another shot under the elbow appeared to briefly hurt his opponent in the fourth.
But Chacon displayed his appetite for battle in the fifth, landing a decent right hand, while the man from Mendoza unloaded crisp combinations during the sixth.
A difficult spell for McDonnell continued into the seventh as he was staggered by a looping right hand.
With his ambitious plans in peril, the Yorkshireman came on strong in the next, ripping home an uppercut and a series of draining body shots.
Chacon, a late replacement, was showing signs of fatigue and a straight right breached his defences in the ninth, but the stoppage in the following round was still unexpected.
McDonnell cuffed Chacon with a right hand and he responded with two timid jabs before suddenly signalling that he had suffered an injury. Referee Terry O’Connor waved off the contest, handing a welcome win to the title holder.
"It was a bit weird," McDonnell told Sky Sports Box Office. "I thought I had a nasty cut!
"It was just getting tough and I was ready to start stepping it up. I felt very comfortable in there.
"My future is going for a big unification fight. I'm going to be on the ball for that fight and bring another belt home to Britain."
