Britain’s Lee Haskins claimed the IBF interim bantamweight title by stopping Ryosuke Iwasa of Japan in the sixth round at the Whitchurch Arena on his home turf in Bristol.
Haskins, 32, was the livelier fighter in the battle of the two southpaws and caught the eye with a number of his punches in a dominant performance as he built an early lead.
Iwasa, 25, who was fighting outside Japan for the first time, employed a more orthodox style behind a solid jab and looked prepared to go the distance.
However, he was caught by a big left hand from British and EBU champion Haskins in the sixth round and, although he beat the count, referee Phil Edwards called a halt to the contest with 50 seconds of the round remaining.
Haskins, who is nicknamed Playboy, now has a record of 31 wins and four defeats, while Iwasa was suffering only the second defeat of his career, the other coming at the hands of current WBC champion Shinsuke Yamanaka four years ago.
"I've had 35 professional fights and that was the best performance," said Haskins.
The interim title match was called after reigning IBF champion Randy Caballero suffered an ankle injury that put him out of action for four to six months and Caballero could be the next opponent for Haskins.
Yorkshireman Bob Ajisafe claimed the Commonwealth light-heavyweight title at the second time of asking when he stopped Kenyan Daniel Wanyonyi in the fourth round of the main support contest.