Oleksandr Usyk stops Daniel Dubois to retain world heavyweight titles after low-blow controversy

Oleksandr Usyk defended his WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO world titles with a ninth-round stoppage victory over Daniel Dubois, but the challenger's promoter Frank Warren says he will campaign for a rematch after the referee controversially ruled a low blow in the fifth round.

Ultimately the fight - live on TNT Sports Box Office - was ended with a right hand in the ninth round from which Dubois could not beat the referee's ten count, after a knockdown from a right hook, straight-right combination had sent him to the canvas at the end of the previous round.

The talk after the fight was about the fifth round when Dubois aimed a body shot which caught Usyk on the waistband leading the champion to go down, the referee to rule a low blow and spend around three minutes recovering.

TNT Sports pundit Carl Frampton was convinced it was a legal punch, feeling Usyk's trunks being raised too high was evidence the shot should have been legal. Dubois said afterwards he was "cheated" out of the world title, while his promoter said he will campaign for a rematch.

Usyk's exemplary footwork continually put Dubois on the back foot in the early rounds as he moved in and out of range and landed right jabs and straight left hands.

After the contentious shot, Dubois hurt Usyk with body shots and won the sixth round, forcing the champion onto the back foot.

Sensing the challenger was weaker at the end of rounds, Usyk brought big efforts towards the end of the sixth and seventh, landing crunching uppercuts and making Dubois look weary at the end of the latter.

Dubois fought superbly for the first two-and-half minutes of the next round, landing body shots and right hands upstairs, but once more Usyk launched a late salvo landing a right hook to the side of the Londoner's head then a straight right which put the challenger down on the bell.

The ninth round saw Dubois caught with a powerful right jab which sent the British fighter to the canvas and he could not beat the referee's count. Afterwards Usyk dedicated the fight to his country, adding he wants to fight Tyson Fury next, but is unsure whether the Gypsy King feels the same way.

The talk in the aftermath of the fight will be dominated by that moment in the fifth round, however.

"The situation is we will be lobbying the WBA to declare this a no contest," Warren said. "The knockdown landed on the waistband of his shorts ... the criteria as is explained at the rules meeting, is that the waist is the midpoint of the hips which is much lower"

The highlight of the undercard was British young fighter of the year Hamzah Sheeraz's demolition of previously unbeaten Ukrainian Dmytro Mytrofanov.

Sheeraz dropped his opponent twice with sharp, snappy jabs in the first round and then, wary of this weapon, put Mytrofanov down in the second with a crushing right hand, leading to the referee stopping the contest.

Sheeraz's record improves to 18-0 (with 14 stoppage wins), while Mytrofanov slips to 13-1-1.

Aadam Hamed, son of the legendary Prince Naseem Hamed, made his debut stopping the out-matched Vojtech Hrdy (now 1-3) in the first round.

He showcased a strong southpaw jab and his father's unique knee-flexes when out of range and when he trapped his opponent in the corner he easily landed to head and body with nothing coming back from Hrdy.

Without an amateur career, Hamed hopes to have two fights before the end of the year as he slowly builds a professional career under the biggest of shadows.

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