Chris Billam-Smith refused to leave any doubt this time around.

Four months after suffering a controversial points loss in his opponent’s home region the rangy cruiserweight boldly stormed into the hometown of Craig Glover, stopping the local slugger in five rounds Saturday evening at Echo Arena in Liverpool, England.

Billam-Smith scored three knockdown on the night in forcing the stoppage at 1:45 of round five.

The domestic cruiserweight battle opened at close quarters, which quickly proved problematic for Glover despite the short distance being to his advantage. The local boxer was forced to contend with a cut directly above his left eyelid due to a clash of heads within the first minute of the contest, though the taller Billam-Smith unable to capitalize on the development aside from being the more active boxer.

Billam-Smith caused more damage in round two, this time through clean punching. A long and steady jab caught Glover often enough to leave him with a bloody nose and also open to left hooks. The 6’3” Billam-Smith put his height and reach advantage to good use, allowing Glover to come in and counter looping right hands with counter left hooks in round three.

Despite the rough start, Glover refused to allow his fighting spirit to be broken. Billam-Smith eased off of his jab enough to allow Glover to work inside in round four. It provided his squat foe with a false sense of security, setting him up for a left hook for the bout’s first knockdown. Glover beat the count but was on unsteady legs and fortunate the knockdown sequence came just before the bell.

Far too much time was left for his downfall in round five, with Billam-Smith closing the show. Another left hook put Glover down for a second time, this time midway through the round. Glover once again beat the count but was too game for his own good. Rather than clinching and creating space to survive the frame, the Liverpudlian tried to fight his way out of trouble. Billam-Smith capitalized, sending his foe to the canvas for a third time, this time courtesy of a right hand shot. By this point, referee Mark Lyson had seen enough as he waved off the contest.

Glover (10-3, 8KOs) suffers his second loss in his last three starts, both coming in this very venue.

Billam-Smith improves to 10-1 (9KOs), bouncing back strong from a highly questionable 10-round loss to Richard Riakporhe in July. The win puts the 29-year old on the radar in the ever transitioning cruiserweight division.

The bout aired live on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom and streamed live on DAZN, in supporting capacity to unbeaten local hero Callum Smith’s super middleweight title defense versus mandatory challenger John Ryder.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox