JJ Metcalf continued his fine recent run as he beat Courtney Pennington in six rounds of their super-welterweight ten-rounder on the Washington-Lopez bill in Leeds.

Metcalf, the former Commonwealth champion, suffered a crushing loss in what was supposed to be his breakthrough fight against Ted Cheeseman last year before losing to Kieron Conway, but his career is back on an upward swing now, having beaten big-punching Spaniard Kerman Lejarraga in Bilbao in May.

Pennington should have provided a serious test, but the New Yorker was disappointing, as he never really got into the fight and was steadily overwhelmed.

“I was devastated after them defeats but things happen for a reason,” Metcalf said. “That was a learning experience. I was bit a flat there and next time I won’t be.

“I’ve heard Dennis Hogan [the IBO champion] says he wants to fight in Ireland, where my ancestors are from - at Croke Park on the Katie Taylor bill. I’d love that fight.

“Dennis is a proper fighter, but I don’t know if he’ll take the fight, so if you are listening, Dennis, let’s get it on. It makes sense to me.”

Metcalf took a couple of rounds to find his range, but while Pennington moved around the ring well, his output was negligible.

In the third round, Metcalf started to close the range and attack the body and had Pennington under sustained attack in the fourth. Pennington was urged to show more by his corner, but in the fifth round, he just tried moving away ever more anxiously as Metcalf poured on the pressure.

A big left hook and then a solid right hurt Pennington and he looked to be just covering up as his gumshield was knocked out, buying him a break. Pennington at least then tried throwing back but Metcalf was all over him, controlling the distance with the jab and then catching the tired-looking Pennington with solid punches.

In the sixth round, Pennington looked so tired he was struggling to stay on his feet as he held on and tried to smother Metcalf. But the action was all one way, with Metcalf finishing the round strongly. After Pennington slowly walked back to his corner at the end of the round, he was followed by referee Howard Foster and the fight was called off.

Former WBA bantamweight champion Shannon Courtenay returned from 14 months out of the ring as she earned a dominant eight-round decision over Gemma Ruegg.

Courtenay had not boxed since Jamie Mitchell claimed her WBA title last year, but she looked sharp and accurate against Ruegg, who made her work hard throughout and never gave up.

Ruegg tried to walk Courteney down and, while Courtenay landed the showier punches. Ruegg did have some success, notably in the last round as she put Courteney under pressure. Referee John Latham scored it 77-75.

Courtenay, who could be targeting a fight with Nina Hughes, who recently took the WBA belt from Mitchell, although she could be more comfortable at super-bantamweight having lost her title on the scales before the fight with Mitchell.

Hopey Price turned in an impressive eight rounds as he boxed well on the front and backfoot to earn a shutout decision over Spain’s Jonathan Santana.

Price is freakishly tall for a featherweight and has incredible reach, which he uses well, throwing a powerful southpaw jab and swinging in solid left hands. But his punch variety is what stands out, as he somehow finds room for hard hooks with either hand.

Santana struggled to get to grips with Price’s reach and, while he landed a decent right early in the third, he was then knocked down by a straight left to the body. The Spaniard was not really hurt, but Price continued to dispirit him by keeping him at range.

Price was forced onto the ropes in the fifth round, but Price did well backed up, covering up well and landing to the body as he started to slow Santana up.

In the seventh round, Price stepped up a gear, mixing hooks with either hand and, while Santana still tried everything to land, Price’s variety was too much for him.

Midway through the eighth, Santana managed to force Price back to the ropes again and landed a decent right, but it spurred Price into action, as he landed hooks with either hand that seemed to rock Santana, who was forced to hold on. Referee John Latham scored it 80-72. Price is now 9-0.

Also moving to 9-0 was Cory O’Regan, the lightweight from Leeds, as he stopped Antonio Rodriguez, of Spain, in the fourth round.

O’Regan had won all his first eight fights on points, not losing a single round, but he started like he was out for a first stoppage against late-sub Rodriguez, who was under pressure at the end of the first round.

He was content to box his way through the second but hurt Rodriguez with a big left at the end of the second round and piled in on the ropes, although he ran out of time.

The domination continued in the third, but there were signs that Rodriguez was wilting in the fourth and after O’Regan backed him into the ropes. O’Regan opened up with both hands until referee Howard Foster stepped in at 2:03 of the round.

Rhiannon Dixon recorded the best win of her career to date as she produced more or less a punch-perfect performance to beat Kristine Shergold over eight rounds at lightweight.

Shergold is 41 and has a career that goes back to 2008, which certainly counts as the previous era of women’s boxing. This was only her 15th fight, though, and she was certainly a step up from the “journeywoman” boxer that normally makes up the right side of the bill for female fights. She had last boxed in September when she drew with Vicky Williamson for the Commonwealth title.

But she was no match for Dixon, though, a quick southpaw trained by Anthony Crolla, who was constantly a step ahead and pinged Shergold, who tended to come forward square on, with a series of hard, straight lefts.

By the sixth round, Shergold was cut, after a clash of heads, and Dixon started to go through the gears as Shergold came forward aggressively but was picked off.

But there was success for Shergold in the seventh as she reduced the gap and made Dixon exchange punches at close quarters. And there was no let-up from Shergold in the last as she made Dixon work until the final bell. Referee John Latham scored it 80-73 as Dixon moved to 7-0.

Super-welterweight Junaid Bostan moved to 4-0 and recorded his fourth stoppage as he knocked out Athanasios Glynos, of Greece, in the third of a scheduled six-rounder.

The fight turned into a bit of a tear-up, as Bostan forced the pace, while Glynos loaded up on big left hands, some of which caught Bostan square on.

Bostan was the sharper, though, and the more the fight went on, his accuracy went up as Glynos left himself open to counters in his eagerness to land.

In the fourth round, Bostan rocked Glynos with a solid right hand and, while he three him to the floor, Glynos looked hurt and was glad to hear the bell.

But Glynos was hurt early in the fifth round by a left uppercut and then Bostan landed a huge overhand that dropped Glynos heavily, referee Howard Foster waving it off at 0:37 of the round without taking up the count.

Leeds super-bantamweight Koby McNamara moved to 4-0, but was made to work hard by Nabil Ahmed before claiming a 40-37 decision from referee Howards Foster. McNamara landed some big shots, but he could not stop Ahmed, who knew enough to cause him problems.