By the end of the first round, the writing was on the wall for Welshman Gavin Gwynne. A huge, lumpy swelling had formed around his right eye, his vision was limited, and the clock was ticking.
Worse than that, Portsmouth southpaw Mark Chamberlain started relentlessly pummelling him, ultimately forcing a corner intervention at 2:46 of the fourth round.
“I wanted to make a statement out here,” said Chamberlain. “I want to be back here in the summer.
“It was a true 50-50 fight, I take my hat off to Gavin, he’s a true champion, but I’m younger, hungrier and I want it and I’m coming for them all at 135. I’m the man in Britain at 135, so whoever wants it can have it.”
The fighters set off at a fast pace, but with a minute to go in the opening round the shape of Gwynne’s head started to change.
He had a violent swelling around his right eye, there was blood by it and his optic was starting to close.
Referee Howard Foster took a look at the damage before allowing the fighters to recommence in the second round, but it was bad, and while Foster allowed it to continue, it seemed it was only a matter of time and it was not on Gwynne’s side.
There was a ridge of swelling around Gwynne’s eye and Foster asked the doctor to look at the injury before the third, but again the fight went on.
Chamberlain was boxing well, and with aggression, and his volume was unrelenting, but Gwynne had some success with body shots, and the Welshman had a brief reprieve when he lost his mouthpiece in the third. Gwynne’s eye was a mess and he was lost in a hailstorm of leather as Chamberlain turned the screws and upped the pressure.
Gwynne’s eye bulged as his corner worked on it with the enswell between rounds, and he didn’t want for courage or heart, but as he tried to walk Chamberlain down he was caught by shots he couldn’t see coming and losing ground on the scorecards.
That was the way trainer Tony Borg saw it in the corner, and as Chamberlain covered on the ropes and Chamberlain allowed his combinations to flow to the head and body, Borg threw in the towel and referee Foster accepted the stoppage.
“I’ll fight anyone put in front of me,” said the 25-year-old winner, who is now 15-0 (11 KOs).
The 33-year-old Welshman Gwynne is now 17-3-1 (5 KOs).