Derry middleweight John Duddy scored a tenth round stoppage of Italian Alessio Furlan last night to triumph in his first professional fight on Irish soil.
Duddy jetted in from his New York base to top the Hunky Dorys fight night bill at Dublin's National Stadium and gained a workmanlike 21st straight win of his career.
The 28-year-old Ulsterman moved a step closer to a European title shot as he stopped the durable Furlan, 2 minutes and 42 seconds into the tenth and final round.
Duddy made a composed start, landing a flurry of powerful shots to floor Furlan in the first round. However, the Rocca Canavese fighter got up and dug deep to almost take the bout to a points decision.
Frustratingly for Duddy the killer punch would not come and the former Irish amateur champion did become a little wayward in the middle rounds, having been cut twice over his eyes due to a clash of heads.
In front of a partisan 3,000-strong crowd, Duddy bounced back to boss the final rounds and Furlan hit the canvas twice in the tenth, reeling from strong right uppercuts.
Reacting to the win, Duddy said: 'This is the beginning of something special for Ireland. Bernard Dunne has taken pro boxing to another level here and I'm following in his footsteps.
'Irish boxing is thriving at the moment and I'm just glad to be a part of it.'
Asked about his fighter's immediate future, Duddy's new trainer Don Turner said his charge is 'four or five fights away from a world title'.
