 Skelton is a former world champion kick boxer |
British and Commonwealth heavyweight champion Matt Skelton had to dig deep to defend his titles against Keith Long at Bethnal Green's York Hall on Friday. Skelton was frustrated by his opponent for long periods but finally landed a clean blow in the 11th round to send Long tumbling to the canvas.
The Brixton fighter picked himself up but the referee then stepped in.
On the undercard, Danny Hunt retained his English lightweight title with a points win over Salford's Lee Meager.
Skelton had mixed feelings after his win.
"I'm a bit disappointed with the fight and as you can see my corner were getting mad at me," he said.
"But the main thing was the win and Long went 12 rounds with Danny Williams - he's a spoiler and he's good at it."
The undefeated Skelton is hoping to book a place on the Vitali Klitschko-Williams undercard in Las Vegas.
And a Williams victory over Klitschko on 11 December could even set up an unlikely all-British world title showdown.
MMIX
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