Liddard stops Morello to take European title
George Liddard stopped Dario Morello in round eight to claim the European middleweight title in front of a raucous crowd at the Copper Box. The British fighter, nicknamed the Billericay Bomber, improved his professional record to 15-0 after the referee waved off the action, with Morello suffering his first defeat and falling to 14-1.
Both men entered the bout with unblemished records. The fight was a middleweight clash that reached its conclusion when the referee called a halt in the eighth round. According to The Sun's live blog, the fight was called off when Morello went back to his corner with a huge cut above his right eye, leaving the Italian unable to see. Liddard had been piling on pressure throughout the middle rounds, and the stoppage marked his first career knockout victory.
Liddard dedicated the fight to his grandfather, who passed away nine years ago, and credited Morello for his toughness. Speaking after the win, he welcomed a potential clash with WBO middleweight world champion Denzel Bentley, who was ringside at the Copperbox.
The victory adds the European belt to Liddard's collection, which already includes British and Commonwealth titles. He is now a step closer to a world title shot, with his unbeaten record positioning him as a serious middleweight prospect.
Full undercard results
In other action on the card, Emmanuel Buttigieg and P A Gordon fought to a split draw, with scorecards reading 93-97, 96-94, and 95-95. Jimmy Sains defeated Tom Cowling by unanimous decision (119-109, 119-109, 118-110), and Tiah Mai Ayton beat Ellie Hellewell by RTD in round six at 2:00.
Preliminary results included Connor Mitchell defeating Caine Singh on points (39-37), Louie Ward stopping Jon Martinez by KO in round three (2:36), Ioan Croft beating Tomas Andres Reynoso by TKO in round six (1:50), and Harley Burrows stopping Carlos Miguel Ronner by TKO in round one (1:05).