Daniel Dubois retained his WBO heavyweight title with a second-round stoppage of Fabio Wardley on Saturday at the O2 Arena in London. Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions presented the rematch on DAZN PPV.
Dubois (24-3, 23 KOs), of Greenwich, stopped Wardley (20-2-1, 19 KOs), of Ipswich, at 2:21 of the second round after the challenger’s corner threw in the towel.
Dubois hurt Wardley almost immediately, landing a right hand to the chin that sent him down for a count from referee Steve Gray. Wardley got up but struggled to recover as Dubois continued landing heavy punches. The challenger was hurt again near the end of a punishing opening round.
In the second, Dubois maintained control and gave Wardley little opportunity to fight his way back into the contest. With Wardley taking punches and unable to defend himself effectively, his corner threw in the towel, and Gray halted the fight.
Louie O’Doherty and Michael Gomez Jr. Fight To Draw
British and Commonwealth lightweight champion Louie O’Doherty (12-0-1, 3 KOs), of Halstead, retained his titles after a twelve-round majority draw against Manchester’s Michael Gomez Jr. (23-2-1, 8 KOs).
Gomez controlled the first four rounds and continued scoring effectively in the fifth and sixth, although O’Doherty began making the fight more competitive. The champion had his best spell in the seventh and eighth, using his work rate to take both rounds.
O’Doherty was bleeding from his nose and mouth during a close ninth round in which Gomez landed well. Referee Lee Every warned Gomez for a low blow in the tenth, while O’Doherty’s activity gave him an argument for taking the round.
The pace remained high in the eleventh, with O’Doherty again doing enough to make it close. Gomez began celebrating midway through the final round and repeated the gesture in the closing seconds, allowing O’Doherty to outwork him during an important finish.
One judge scored the fight 115-114 for Gomez, while the other two returned cards of 114-114.
Bakhodir Jalolov Outpoints Solomon Dacres
Two-time Olympic gold medalist Bakhodir Jalolov (18-0, 15 KOs), of Uzbekistan, defeated Solomon Dacres (10-2, 3 KOs), of Warley, by a ten-round unanimous decision.
The southpaw scored the fight’s only knockdown in the fifth round, catching Dacres on the chin with a straight left. Dacres beat the count and completed the distance, but Jalolov remained in control.
The scores were 99-91 and 99-90 twice.
Nelson Birchall Stops Levi Giles
Morecambe’s Nelson Birchall (13-0, 10 KOs) stopped Levi Giles (17-4-1, 4 KOs), of Grimsby, at 0:51 of the seventh round of their scheduled ten-round contest.
Birchall dropped Giles with a body shot in the fifth round. Another body shot put Giles down in the sixth, and a third knockdown in the seventh brought the stoppage from referee Sean McAvoy.
Tony Curtis Wins Commonwealth International Title
London’s Tony Curtis (15-1, 4 KOs) stopped Kerim Agius at 2:57 of the fourth round to win the vacant Commonwealth International super flyweight title.
Curtis scored knockdowns in the second and fourth rounds before referee Sean McAvoy ended the scheduled eight-round contest.
Manny Safari Stops Jake Pollard
Manny Safari (1-0, 1 KO), of Bracknell, won his professional debut by stopping Bradford’s Jake Pollard in the fifth round of their scheduled six-round bout.
Safari scored a first-round knockdown and secured the finish at 2:15 of round five, with referee Amy Pu calling a halt.
Fawas Aborode Finishes Rashid Omar
Fawas Aborode (3-0, 3 KOs), based in Aberdeen, stopped Cardiff southpaw Rashid Omar in the fourth round of their scheduled six-round lightweight contest.
Aborode put Omar down in the fourth, prompting referee Sean McAvoy to halt the bout at 1:58.
Leighton Birchall Takes Shutout Decision
Morecambe featherweight Leighton Birchall (6-0, 3 KOs) defeated Mexico’s Alejandro Morales Chazaro (9-10-2, 5 KOs) over six rounds.
Referee Sean McAvoy scored every round for Birchall, returning a 60-54 card.
Adam Olaniyan Stops Dan Garber
Tallaght heavyweight Adam Olaniyan (5-0, 5 KOs) stopped Bradford’s Dan Garber (14-10, 2 KOs) at 1:15 of the second round of their scheduled four-round bout.
Olaniyan dropped Garber in the second, prompting the veteran’s corner to throw in the towel. Referee Amy Pu kicked it aside and allowed the fight to continue after Garber rose.
A second knockdown followed, with another towel coming from Garber’s corner. Pu then stopped the contest.
Aaron Noriega Stops Leonardo Baez
California’s Aaron Noriega stopped Leonardo Baez at 1:41 of the fourth and final round of their super featherweight bout.
Noriega scored two knockdowns in the fourth before referee Amy Pu halted the fight.
Zayn Ahmed Stops Kasey Bradnum
Slough southpaw Zayn Ahmed (4-0, 2 KOs) stopped Kasey Bradnum (1-51), of Harwich, at 2:49 of the second round of their scheduled four-round contest.
Ahmed scored two knockdowns during the bout before referee Amy Pu called a halt.
Issiah Hamilton-Allen Wins Every Round
Ipswich middleweight Issiah Hamilton-Allen (4-0) defeated Jensen Irving (6-41-2, 1 KO), of Swindon, by a four-round points decision.
Referee Sean McAvoy scored the contest 40-36.
Thomas Treiber served as ring announcer.