Caroline Dubois hammers Jessica Camara over two rounds, but is held to technical draw after accidental head clash | Boxing News

Caroline Dubois was brutally dismantling Jessica Camara, but came away with a technical draw when an accidental clash of heads ruled out the Canadian challenger.

Dubois retains the WBC lightweight world championship and will likely consider that a victory in all but name.

After being elevated from Interim to full world titlist, it was Dubois’ first defence of the belt. But she looked a consummate champion from the opening bell.

The southpaw from London attacked her challenger with ruthless efficiency. Dubois sent in a hard, firm jab and then a vicious straight one-two dropped Camara early in the fight.

She wound up vicious left hooks and she blasted in further punches as she hunted down an early finish.

Camara had to keep her guard high and tight. But Dubois still stabbed her backhand left through.

Throughout the second round Dubois kept Camara under pressure. The challenger was badly marked up, her nose damaged and a bad cut opened up.

Before the third round could begin referee Kieran McCann called a time-out so the doctor could inspect Camara. The Canadian was unable to continue but with the referee ruling that the injury was caused by an accidental clash of heads, the contest went down as a technical draw.

Dubois had dominated the contest for as long as it lasted and although she won’t get the victory, she does retain the WBC world championship.

“I don’t think she wanted it. I hit her with a straight right and knocked her down in the first round,” Dubois said afterwards.

“I saw her right eye was swelling up and that was from a punch. With the cut, the blood wasn’t coming in her face, it was coming round the side of her face. I’m punching her and maybe it’s splattering on her face.

“She didn’t want it, man. It was getting stopped by the doctor or I was stopping it.”

Londoner Deevorn Miller began his scheduled eight-rounder with Scott Forrest brightly. He kept punching busily, working his way forward.

But Scotland’s Forrest trusted in his power and with a countering right dropped Miller for the first time in the first round.

He wobbled Miller again with a wide right hook, but the London man still fought back.

Forrest then applied a devastating finish in the second round. Just as it looked like Forrest had been backed up to the ropes, he stopped Miller in his tracks with a flush left hook and then blasted him over with a right.

Miller hit the canvas heavily. He tried to right himself but collapsed again and had to be stopped at 1-49 of the second round.

Sam Hickey was in a contest that ought to have been tricky for just a second professional fight. But the Scotsman made it look easy.

Feinting, he took a few moments to study Lewis Howells, an ambitious pro from Wales. Then he attacked with electric speed.

The middleweight from Dundee dropped Howells with a shuddering right uppercut that drove brutally hard into the chin.

The brave Howells sought to fight back, but Hickey sent him back to the canvas on two more occasions, as thudding left hooks to the body knocked the wind out of him. Howells struggled upright to beat those counts but had to be pulled out with a second left in the first round.

Billy Deniz came through an all-action eight-round scrap with Mickey Ellison, winning the points decision 77-76.

In the fourth round Deniz dropped his hands but chopped hard punches through, a heavy left hook amongst the hits that slammed into Ellison. He had the crowd roaring him on and teed off further on Ellison. But Ellison was brave throughout, firing back to make the bout exciting and going the distance.

Mario Silva plied Emmanuel Zion with jabs and began to crack home long, backhand shots. With the crowd warming to his efforts when he worked Zion over on the ropes, Silva was dominating proceedings.

But the Londoner did put up some resistance in later rounds when he began to slug hooks of his own into Silva, giving the Mancunian momentary pause for thought.

Silva was still a clear winner, taking a points decision 59-56 after six rounds.

Leeds’ Ellis Price dominated Liam Fitzmaurice, a local man who was making his professional boxing debut. A meaty left hook to the head initiated the first knockdown. Price dropped him a second time before further heavy shots prompted the referee to pull Fitzmaurice out in the first round.

Watch Callum Simpson vs Steed Woodall fight for the British and Commonwealth titles live on Sky Sports Main Event or Sky Sports+.