Artur Beterbiev has stopped British star Anthony Yarde to retain his unified world light-heavyweight titles.
Beterbiev and Yarde squared off at the OVO Wembley Arena with 'The Beast From The East' looking to dethrone the undefeated Russian champion in a huge upset. The British star was roared on by his home support at the event, which was his second world title challenge after losing to Sergey Kovalev in 2019.
And it was the Russian who continued his undefeated perfect record, with a brutal eighth round seeing the referee step in to halt proceedings after Beterbiev dropped Yarde with a booming right hook.
The opening round began with both men trying to establish their jab with Yarde showing glimpses of success in the opening round with the Briton's left hook landing on a couple of occasions. Beterbiev started to make positive shots of his own towards the end of the first as proceedings already began to heat up.
Beterbiev already had a mark under his eye in the second round, and a firefight broke out with a heavy flurry seeing both fighters caught by powerful close-range shots. A great third period continued a shift in momentum for the Russian who landed a booming left hook on the final bell.
The champion then put his foot on the gas in the fourth, but Yarde responded in the following stanza with a booming right hand crushing into his rival. Beterbiev then fired back with some huge uppercuts as the fifth caught fire, before the sixth round saw both men cut at the halfway point with Beterbiev sporting a nasty gash above his eye.
What did you make of the fight? Let us know in the comments section below
An astonishing seventh round saw both fighters have a period of joy with the pair trading brutal blows, before Beterbiev landed a devastating right hook in the eighth. Yarde dropped to a knee after the shot and managed to cling on before the referee had seen enough and stepped in.
The Russian star will now likely pursue a shot at the undisputed titles against fellow countryman Dmitry Bivol later this year which would be a huge opportunity to solidify his status as a pound-for-pound contender. He could also receive a challenge from further British opposition in the shape of Callum Smith who was eagerly waiting in the wings to discover the winner.
