Anthony Cacace became a two-time world champion when he won the WBO super-featherweight title with a unanimous points victory over James 'Jazza' Dickens over 12 rounds at a raucous 3Arena.
Cacace, who had previously held the IBO and IBF belts, briefly had the defending champion in trouble in the fourth round, but it was his superior reach and elusive skills that won him a fight that never quite caught fire.
Many of the rounds were close and the judges scored it 115-113, 116-112 and 116-113 in the Belfast fighter’s favour.
"I’m delighted," said Cacace.
"I had a poor night at the office – Jazza has an awkward style - but I still won the world title. I want to unify the division now."
Cacace had to come through a torrid ninth round when Dickens threw caution to the wind and a looping left hand was the opening shot of his best round of the fight.
However, 37-year-old Cacace showed impressive fitness levels as he regained control and boxed his way to victory.
In the chief support bout, Dublin’s Pierce 'Big Bang' O’Leary (above) won the IBO super-lightweight world title with a dominant display against Maxi Hughes.
Roared on by the partisan crowd, pressure-fighter O’Leary stepped on the gas from the start of the second round and his work-rate and power were too much for his experienced opponent.
Hughes had a string of victories over Irish fighters behind him, but it was clear that his run was coming to an end after he was caught flush by an O’Leary left hand over his guard early in the fourth.
As O’Leary moved in to finish it, he was caught with a left hand and although a right hand from the Dubliner drove Hughes into the ropes, he survived on unsteady legs until the bell.
The Yorkshire native, who had former featherweight world champion Josh Warrington in his corner, soaked up more pressure throughout a one-sided fifth and his corner retired him at the end of the round.
"It’s amazing," said a delighted O’Leary.
"Here I am now world champion! This feeling is amazing and it’s only the start, to be honest, it’s only the start."
Afterwards, promoter Frank Warren promised that O’Leary’s reward for his impressive performance would be a "big unification fight" in the not-too-distant future, possibly in Dublin this summer.
In the first world title fight of an action-packed night, Jono Carroll won the IBO super-featherweight title with a split decision victory over Belfast’s Colm Murphy.
Looking rusty, the Dubliner was outboxed in the early rounds by the underrated Murphy, who controlled the pace and picked his shots smartly.
Carroll, who hadn’t fought in a year, rallied in the second half, changing tactics to close the distance and battling his way back into an exciting contest.
Murphy retained his composure and many in the Arena felt he had done enough to win it.
However, two of the judges didn’t agree and the scorecards read: 116-112 (Murphy), 116-112 and 117-111 (Carroll).
Murphy was typically magnanimous in defeat.
