Fabio Wardley (12-0, 11 KOs) battered Nick Webb to defeat in the first round to retain his English heavyweight title at Fight Camp in Essex. 

The unbeaten Wardley was under pressure for the first two minutes as he was caught by some good right hands. But the more ambitious Webb got, the more open he became. 

Wardley then struck, hammering home some heavy rights hands, which saw Webb fall apart. He got out of one corner, but Wardley was measuring him and he trapped Webb in a neutral corner, where a series of big blows saw Webb crouch down in a position where he couldn’t defend himself. Kieran McCann dived in to end the fight, just as Webb crashed to the floor. 

The official time was 2:30 of the first round. 

“After a few seconds in the ring I thought I would throw caution to the wind and I thought my corner would not be too happy with me, but sometimes you have to dig these things out,” Wardley said. 

“That wasn’t the cleanest performance, I took a few shots I didn’t need to take but it’s all about learning.” 

It was a first successful defence of the English title for Wardley, who is now unbeaten in 12 fights. He said he now wanted a British shot, although rather than challenger Joe Joyce the holder, he asked Joyce, who was ringside, to give the belt up. 

Web is now 17-3, as a run of four wins came to an end.