By Alexey Sukachev

Wembley Arena, Wembley, London - In his first defense since winning the world title with a split nod over Germany superstar Felix Sturm in May, Fedor Chudinov (14-0, 10KOs) dominated overmatched Frank Buglioni (17-2-1, 13KOs) over twelve rounds to retain the "regular" WBA super middleweight championship. The scores were 120-106. 118-108, 117-109.

Buglioni came out of his dressing room to the tune of Elvis Presley's "If I can dream" - and he looked determined, his concentration absolute. He gave his all. He lost as he came in - fighting till the very end of his fight.

WBA #4 rated Buglioni (17-2-1, 13 KOs) wasn't the first-line challenger to the title and was rightfully considered an underdog. In his penultimate fight he has barely got a draw with little-known Lee Markham and a year ago he was stopped in six by upset master Sergey Khomitskiy. Actually, the Enfield native was to fight Chudinov in late July but that fight was postponed since the Russian suffered an injury, meaning Buglioni had a chance to withdraw from a fight where he was the heavy underdog. Buglioni chose to fight and no one was disappointed.

Fighters started cautiously, seeking for sudden opportunities and feeling one another out. Chudinov, 28, began punching seriously in the second round. He relied both on single shots (mostly with his right hand) or multi-punch combinations with a hidden power shot in the series. Buglioni, 26, preferred to move around constantly, trying to establish his jab and to respond with quick combos when possible. Chudinov did better in the next couple of rounds but Buglioni was more successful in the fifth.

In the sixth, the UK boxer continued to capitalize on his mild success and landed some serious shots, culminating in a hard right hook, which shook Chudinov. As the round ended with the bell - another right hook connected, and Chudinov went down. The late shot prompted referee Terry O'Connor to deduct two points instantly from Buglioni.

Nevertheless, the local Italian tried to wobble Chudinov again in the seventh but it was a fully recovered Chudinov who dished out more punishment. The Russian was once again in a killer mode and never made a step back since round nine, beating Buglioni at will. Frank kept coming for more no matter what he was hit with, and that was dangerous against the Russian, who combines both one-punch power (like a shot against Ben McCulloch in 2014 KOTY candidate) and prolonged beating ability. But the Brit showed his brave heart and, despite a solid tonnage of punishment taken, fought to the very end and that made for a nice scrap.

Fedor partially avenged his older brother Dmitry, who travelled to the UK in February only to be stopped by Chris Eubank Jr. Next for Chudinov could be a voyage to Germany - either for a rematch with Felix Sturm or for a meeting with WBA interim champion Vincent Feigenbutz.