On the undercard at the O2 Arena, in London, the Essex lightweight Kevin Mitchell suffered his second loss on the bounce.
Somehow given another chance of a world title fight, with an eliminator against the Venezuela fighter Ismael Barroso, 31-year-old Mitchell was stopped inside five rounds.
Barroso arrived on these shores with a record that suggested he had some power in his fists but his record also suggested his inactivity might favour Mitchell.
The opening rounds saw Mitchell box well, keeping at a distance and trying to pick his opponent off. A slip, early on, where Mitchell tripped over his opponents feet, wasn?t ruled as a knockdown but when Barroso unloaded his punches, they seemed to be hurting the experienced British fighter.
The end came in the fifth when Mitchell was in trouble again and the action was stopped with the Venezuelan clearly too powerful for Mitchell.
After a second successive defeat, the fourth of his career and all coming by knockout, it?s hard to see where Mitchell goes from here, is it the end of a career that never quite delivered what he deserved?
Mitchell Stopped in 5th Round by Barroso
