Karriss Artingstall dominated her eight round step-up against Jade Taylor, winning 79-72 on the referee’s scorecard.
Taylor was the first unbeaten opponent of Artingstall’s professional career, and she was also in uncharted territory in terms of rounds, but the Olympic bronze medallist exerted control throughout.
Her judgement of distance clicked into gear from the first round. Initially Taylor could scarcely hit her as Artingstall smartly stepped back from the incoming punches, letting them fall short.
- Lawrence Okolie aims to pit himself against Oleksandr Usyk
- Lawrence Okolie vs Chris Billam-Smith: Key questions and expert predictions
- Lawrence Okolie tells Chris Billam-Smith: ‘Dreams don’t always come true’
The Macclesfield fighter began to lance firm southpaw crosses over.
Artingstall struck in those punches with more power in the third round, weaving forward and back, escaping from Taylor’s attacks to slam her left into the Salford boxer’s jaw.
She stood at close range in the third round too, starting to grind forward, taking more punches but landing hurtful shots herself.
Artingstall pinned her opponent down with jabs, driving her to the ropes. The left cross smacked into Taylor’s body, lead hooks then worrying both the body and the head.
Taylor, the first Central Area female champion, has gone 10 rounds before. But it was Artingstall who was setting the pace. She plucked out clear blows, a big lead right hitting in, then the straight left once again. These painful strikes jolted Taylor’s head back.
Artingstall lined up another cracking straight one-two and added in more variety when she hooked her left over to stab the right straight in.
In the eighth and last round Artingstall could land her hard left cross almost at will, and smacked the right hook over for good measure too, taking the decision win clearly on points.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Michael McKinson subjected Lebin Morales to a punishing one-sided drubbing, blasting through a weight of shots until the referee had to intervene and pull the Nicaraguan out at 1 minute, 25 seconds of the seventh round.
McKinson is not known as a big puncher. He’s only won four of his 26 professional bouts inside the distance but he has now picked up his last two by stoppage victories.
Dominant, McKinson dropped Morales with a short southpaw left at the end of the first round. McKinson continued to keep the pressure on him.
He sent flush jabs through and chucked another hard left after it.
A right hook opened up the path for a left cross and he started to rock the Nicaraguan’s head with those hits.
He sustained the pace of his assaults. The Nicaraguan was fading and in trouble when the referee saved him.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Lively underdog Jonatas Gomes de Olivera dropped Razor Ali with a thumping left hook in the second round. But Ali came away with a 58-55 points win after six rounds.
Tommy Welch started brightly and finished with a brace of hard shots but he could not shift “The Beast” from Belgium, Amine Boucetta.
He whacked his right into the side of Boucetta’s head and shook him up with a left hook. But Boucetta would not budge, even when shifted with an uppercut in the fifth round.
Welch won 59-55 after six rounds.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Lewie Edmondson cracked Petar Nosic with the occasional clean shot controlling the bout only for a head clash in the fifth round to leave the Croatian with a bad cut over his eye.
Nosic had to be stopped and Edmondson won a 50-45 technical decision.
Watch Lawrence Okolie vs Chris Billam-Smith live on Sky Sports Action or Sky Showcase