Chris Billam-Smith stayed in contention for a world cruiserweight title shot after he forced Ryan Rozicki's corner to pull him out at the end of Round 7 on Saturday.
Former WBO world cruiserweight champion Billam-Smith (22-2, 14 KOs), 35, from Bournemouth in England, triumphed after an intense, non-title fight, which was new promoter Zuffa Boxing's UK debut.
Billam-Smith was ahead when Rozicki (21-2-1, 20 KOs), 31, from Ontario, Canada, was sensibly pulled out by his corner, with his eyes swollen, before the start of Round 8 at the Bournemouth International Centre.
Rozicki was incredibly tough and both fighters were taken to hospital afterwards for check-ups as a precaution.
It was Billam-Smith's second win since he lost the WBO belt to Gilberto Ramirez on points in November 2024.
"Chris has been in my gym nine years but the power he possesses and he showed tonight, my goodness," Billam-Smith's trainer Shane McGuigan said.
"He had to fight that way. When the energy poured out of Rozicki, that's when Chris caught him. Rozicki was very unorthodox but determination and resilience is Chris Billam-Smith in a nutshell. "
It did not start well for the Rozicki. He suffered a cut around his left eye in a rough and tumble Round 1 and was then deducted a point in Round 2 for use of the head.
Billam-Smith then rocked Rozicki with a huge right in the third, but the Canadian survived on shaky legs and rallied to make Round 4 and 5 close amid some furious exchanges.
Rozicki's face was badly marked up with swollen eyes for the final few rounds, yet he kept coming forward and there was some worrying moments for Billam-Smith in the entertaining slugfest.
Billam-Smith took control in Round 6 but Rozicki, despite looking increasingly bloodied, came firing back in Round 7. Billam-Smith then landed a combination of thudding hooks flush to the head without reply to end Round 7, which prompted Rozicki's corner to stop the fight.
It was a sensible decision to stop Rozicki, whose hands were hanging limply by his side as Billam-Smith landed at will and Rozicki staggered back to his corner after the bell.
It was a hard night's work for Billam-Smith, but a big fight probably beckons as the reward.