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DeGale wins British title after dominating Smith

James DeGale won the British super-middleweight title © Getty Images

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James DeGale announced his arrival as a formidable power in the super-middleweight division by stopping Paul Smith in the ninth round to clinch the British title.

DeGale emphatically answered questions about whether he could handle a more experienced opponent by dominating the bout from start to finish. The Olympic champion, fighting as a professional for the ninth time, showed he had the perfect storm of speed and power as he outclassed Smith, a veteran of 31 battles.

In the build-up to the clash, DeGale admitted that the bout threatened to be a tipping point in his nascent career - a defeat meant a significant step backwards, while a victory had the potential to propel him into the world title picture in the near future.

There is no doubt that he will be talked of with some confidence as a future world champion now. In front of a hostile Liverpool crowd firmly behind Smith, DeGale did not get drawn into the reckless trade-off that many predicted. Instead, he kept his opponent at long range with a jab that prodded away incessantly.

The first signs of serious peril for Smith came in the fourth as a clash of heads caused him to draw blood above the right eye - a wound that was easily targeted by DeGale's jab. Smith weathered the storm after being cut, but he suffered scares in each of rounds six to nine before the referee eventually intervened.

Making the second defence of his title, Smith was wobbled in the eighth with a thundering uppercut that sapped the steadiness from his legs. It was a setback from which he never truly recovered - from that point onwards he stopped trying to come forward, and was trapped against the ropes as a result. It was against the ropes that the decisive blows were delivered, bringing an end to his title reign.

Earlier, an unimpressive Nathan Cleverly did nothing to strike fear into the rest of the light-heavyweight division after he edged past Nadjib Mohammedi on a unanimous points decision. Cleverly, whose scheduled opponent Alejandro Lakatos pulled out with pneumonia, was given the sternest test of his career to date as he struggled in the middle rounds.

The mandatory challenger for the WBO light-heavyweight title appeared to suffer lapses in concentration at times as he failed to get to grips with an opponent who carries a markedly different style to Lakatos. Nonetheless, he pulled through to extend his unbeaten record to 22 - although he was booed by the crowd at the end of the contest.

Kell Brook continued to hammer on the door of world title recognition by totally outclassing Philip Kotey, winning via second-round stoppage. The Sheffield fighter, who has extended his unbeaten record to 23 bouts, had his opponent down in the first before getting the job done with an flurry early in the second.

Matthew Macklin defended his European middleweight strap by battling to a gruelling unanimous points decision over Ruben Varon.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.