Anthony Cacace's late career bloom continued with a third impressive victory in the last 12 months as the Belfast fighter stopped Leigh Wood in the ninth round in Nottingham.
Despite cuts to his nose and right cheek, Cacace looked to be getting the better of the exchanges in the fight as he looked to follow up last year's stunning wins over Joe Cordina and Josh Warrington.
The 36-year-old closed the show impressively in his rival's home city to retain his lightly-regarded IBO super-featherweight title, having vacated his IBF belt in the run-up to this bout.
Wood, returning from a 19-month lay-off, was given a standing count after falling backwards into the ropes amid a heavy bombardment of punches from Cacace, culminating in a short one-two.
While Wood, the former two-time WBA featherweight champion stepping up to 130lbs for the first time, resumed, he was on unsteady legs and another punishing barrage led to his corner throwing in the towel.
Cacace (now 24-1, 9KOs), told DAZN afterwards: "I put a lot of pressure on myself. I had nothing but negative feelings coming in here but I've fought three two-time world champions.
"Leigh's had a long time off. I didn't beat the best Leigh Wood, but I beat him. I took this fight solely for money. Show me the money (for his next fight), I will travel anywhere. My time is now."
Asked about his future, Wood, also 36, said after slipping to a fourth defeat in 32 professional contests: "I'm not going to make a decision on the spot. We'll see."
