Daniel Dubois came from two knockdowns to defeat Fabio Wardley by technical knockout in the 11th round at the Co-Op Live Arena in Manchester, UK, handing Wardley his first professional loss and claiming the WBO heavyweight title.

Dubois was dropped twice, including a right hook in the first 10 seconds, but recovered to dominate the fight. Wardley suffered severe facial injuries, bleeding heavily from the nose and with his right eye nearly closed.

“It was a war. We came through the sticky moments. Thank you Fabio for that,” Dubois said. He previously held the IBF title before losing it to Oleksandr Usyk.

Dubois improves to 23-3, while Wardley drops to 20-1-1. Promoter Frank Warren called it the best heavyweight fight he had ever promoted and confirmed a rematch clause exists.

Some viewers felt the fight should have been stopped earlier due to Wardley’s injuries. The 31-year-old showed immense heart but could not withstand Dubois’s relentless pressure.

Source: www.aljazeera.com