Steve Cunningham scored a fifth round TKO victory Saturday night to clinch the vacant International Boxing Federation (IBF) Cruiserweight Title.
Held at the Jahnsportforum,Neubrandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany, the fight saw Ross being the aggressor while Cunningham tried to keep his opponent at bay with his left jab.
Cunningham landed a big left in the first round and not soon after Ross’ face was swollen.
The pattern remained the same although Ross scored a knockdown of Cunningham with a big left in the fourth.
However, Cunningham responded with a punch that badly cut Ross below his left eye (likely with the thumb).
The ring doctor advised the referee to stop the fight after one second of the fifth round because of a vertically cut eyelid. Since the injury was caused by a punch, as the referee ruled, Cunningham won by TKO.
After the fight, the supervisor confirmed the referee’s decision. Ross was scheduled to undergo surgery yesterday before flying home. In Cunnigham’s previous fight he scored a unanimous decision over Wayne `Big Truck’ Braithwaite in an IBF Cruiserweight title eliminator last year July. (Fightnews.com)
