By Elliot Foster

Ricky Burns stopped Scotty Cardle in great fashion and proved he still has plenty more in the tank.

The pair clashed in a late-notice lightweight dust-up at Manchester Arena, with the Scot getting the better of his former sparring partner in a statement-maker.

Burns had the better of the rounds before it was called to a halt by referee Mark Lyson after just two minutes and six seconds, as part of the supporting cast to Tony Bellew’s challenge against Oleksandr Usyk for the WBC, WBA Super, IBF, WBO and Ring Magazine world cruiserweight titles, exclusively live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and DAZN Stateside.

It’s one that Cardle, who was hit by a right hand and floored, will have to think about. He rose from the canvas, but referee Lyson called a halt to the fight after issuing the mandatory eight count.

“I felt good in there tonight and I’m glad we got the win,” said Burns afterwards. “I feel normal and I think there are some big fights still out there for me. I felt like I was getting my shots off well in there and we’re always good to go.

“There are some big names out there but I just try to stay away from it. I’ll fight anybody at all and I hope that we can get a big fight in the New Year.”

Also on the card, Dmytro Mytrofanov survived an early scare but was forced to suffer his first blemish.

The Ukrainian, who is trained by Vadym Kazanin and managed by Egis Klimas, was down inside the opening 15 seconds of the fight.

The 29-year-old, who won bronze at the European Amateur Championships in Ankara, Turkey, back in 2011, took on Gino Kanters of Holland over four entertaining rounds and the referee, Mark Lyson, scored it 38 points apiece.