The first England vs. Italy battle of the weekend saw Lyndon Arthur maintain his undefeated record with a ninth-round stoppage over Davide Faraci.
The Manchester light-heavyweight is desperate for big fights and he couldn’t afford to underestimate the previously unbeaten Faraci.
Arthur boxed behind his excellent jab from the outset but there were moments in the fight when he switched off and allowed Faraci to have brief periods of success. As the fight reached the later stages, it appeared that Arthur was prepared to take the safe route to victory but the contest exploded in the penultimate round.
A superb short right hand from Arthur dropped Faraci in the final minute of the ninth session and that was the big breakthrough that Arthur needed. A further attack floored the visitor for a second time and when Arthur let his hands go to close the show, Marcus McDonnell jumped in to stop the action.
Arthur, who has a ton of options domestically in Anthony Yarde, Callum Johnson, and Joshua Buatsi, is now likely to set his sights on Joe Smith Jr. The WBO 175lbs champion would represent the toughest test of Arthur’s career, but the Mancunian’s lofty ranking means a world title fight could be next.
For a full recap of tonight's bill at the Royal Albert Hall, please read below.