ZUFFA Boxing 11 results: Johnny Fisher beats Michael Pirotton in 10-round war

Johnny Fisher came through a gruelling 10-round battle with Michael Pirotton to secure victory in the main event of ZUFFA Boxing 11 at London's Copper Box Arena.

Fisher was pushed throughout by the durable Belgian but ultimately did enough to have his hand raised, closing out ZUFFA Boxing's first event in the English capital.

Elsewhere, Craig Richards faced Radivoje Kalajdzic in the co-main event, while Lee Cutler, Kayla Allen and several unbeaten prospects were also in action.

The main event got underway with Johnny Fisher facing some adversity in the first round. It wasn't exactly smooth sailing for the British heavyweight, with his opponent Michael Pirotton attempting to land bombs early.

In the second round, Fisher did well to evade the hooks coming from Pirotton, a move he would get very familiar with throughout the fight. Neither man could miss to the body, with repeated shots to the midsection beginning to tire both heavyweights.

In the fourth, Fisher opened up a cut above Pirotton's eye which would prove a real problem for the Belgian, requiring attention on numerous occasions between rounds.

As the fight progressed, despite Fisher looking the better fighter, it became clear that both men were beginning to tire. At the end of the eighth round, Fisher grabbed onto the ropes for dear life after a brutal couple of rounds from Pirotton.

In the tenth and final round, both men threw the kitchen sink at each other, desperately searching for a late knockout.

Clubbing overhands from Fisher and crushing inside work from Pirotton weren't enough to bring the contest to an early end, with Fisher ultimately awarded the victory after all 10 rounds.

In the co-main event of the evening, both light heavyweights made a measured start, spending the opening round sizing each other up and getting a feel for their opponent's style and approach.

Craig Richards found success early, managing to pierce the guard of Radivoje Kalajdzic in the first round. However, the attacks failed to have a lasting impact, with ‘Hot Rod’ weathering the pressure well during the opening two rounds of the bout.

Kalajdzic began to assert himself as the fight progressed, particularly in the fourth round, where he emerged as the more dominant fighter. He carried that momentum into the fifth, creating several opportunities to trouble Richards and gain control of the contest.

The complexion of the fight shifted in the sixth round as Kalajdzic increased the tempo and put his foot firmly on the gas. The American rocked Richards on multiple occasions with heavy shots, landing cleanly on the Briton's chin.

Despite the pressure, Richards remained composed, absorbing the attacks and refusing to allow the momentum to swing entirely in his opponent's favour.

As the contest continued, both men enjoyed spells of success, but the sixth round served as a reminder of Kalajdzic's power and ability to change the course of a fight with a single shot.

The ninth and tenth rounds proved closely contested, with both fighters digging deep and emptying the tank in search of victory. The pair stood toe-to-toe in the closing stages, exchanging heavy shots as the bout headed towards the final bell.

With just 10 seconds remaining, Kalajdzic produced one final dramatic moment. A straight right hand caught a weary Richards and sent him to the canvas, although Richards quickly regained his feet before the final bell.

The late knockdown provided a dramatic conclusion to the contest, with Kalajdzic ultimately being awarded the victory by the judges.

Both middleweights made a cautious start, taking their time to establish distance and gauge each other's movement and range. The pace remained measured until the latter stages of the second round, when the action began to intensify.

In the third, Louis Greene absorbed a straight shot from Lee Cutler but responded immediately with a sharp counter that visibly rocked Cutler. The impact forced Cutler to close the distance in an effort to smother Greene's attacks and regain control.

Cutler suffered a cut above his right eye in the fourth round, which hampered him slightly. Sensing an opportunity, Greene increased the pressure and looked to capitalise on the injury.

As the fight progressed, Greene began to feel the pace, while Cutler settled into a strong rhythm. Although Greene continued to have moments of success, Cutler took greater control of the contest, using his movement and timing effectively as Greene struggled to close the distance.

Urged by his corner to seek a knockout, Greene entered the final round knowing he needed a decisive finish. However, Cutler expertly neutralised his attacks and saw out the closing stages of the fight.

When the final bell sounded, it was Cutler who had his hand raised.

Expectations were high for Kayla Allen heading into her professional debut, having become the first female boxer signed by ZUFFA Boxing.

Both women enjoyed moments of success during a balanced opening round before Allen began to look more patient in the second.

Her pressure became increasingly difficult for Edina Kiss to deal with, with the Hungarian dangerously turning her back to Allen towards the end of the round.

At the start of the third, Allen looked more dangerous, landing plenty from both the outside and inside while also focusing her attacks on the midsection of Kiss.

Before the start of the fourth round, Kiss' corner informed the referee that their fighter would not continue, handing Allen victory on her professional boxing debut.

The temperature of the fight gradually increased as the contest progressed, with both Mexican middleweights trading blows rather evenly.

In the fourth round, the fight became a war of attrition, with both Leo Ruiz and Cesar Mateo Tapia wearing each other down with close body shots in the clinch.

In the closing stages of the fifth, Ruiz came on strong against Tapia on the inside, making him look uncomfortable in the later exchanges and visibly wincing.

Ruiz continued to land and change levels excellently, which proved to be a challenge for his opponent, who looked like he was struggling before the end of the seventh round.

After the full 10 rounds, Ruiz had done enough to get his hand raised and secure the victory.

After walking into the ring on home soil, Alex MacMillan looked supremely confident in the opening round of the first bout on the main card.

He had good reason to be, landing heavy shots flush on Guillaume Azagier before dropping the Frenchman late in the opening round.

Opting to fight fire with fire, Azagier attempted to get himself back into the fight but soon found himself back on the canvas. With limited time remaining, the bell came to his rescue and brought an end to the first round.

MacMillan put an end to things quickly in the second, with numerous shots landing cleanly on the Frenchman. With Azagier having no response to the onslaught, his corner promptly threw in the towel to bring an end to the one-sided battle.

Both men entered the fight unbeaten, but neither appeared interested in cautiously protecting their perfect records.

Neither man allowed his opponent to breathe in the first round, with Rogelio Romero landing a clean left hook on Aurel Ignat which visibly fazed the Moldovan.

Ignat ate shots that rained down on him during the second round but came back strongly in the third, landing heavy blows and even knocking his opponent's gumshield out of his mouth.

Once the action resumed, Romero landed a wild right hook which rocked Ignat and forced the referee to step in front of the action and call off the bout in the third round.

Alexis De La Cerda and Cain Lewis both displayed strong defensive technique throughout the opening three rounds, with the Mexican De La Cerda spending more time on the front foot.

Lewis upped the tempo heavily in the fourth round, but by the fifth, the momentum had swung back in his opponent's favour as De La Cerda applied a storm of pressure to the Irishman.

An accidental clash of heads in the middle of the sixth round led to a doctor evaluating Lewis, but he was allowed to continue.

As the fight progressed towards its end, De La Cerda landed some excellent shots to the body with his left hand, including an uppercut which consistently found its way through Lewis' guard.

De La Cerda ultimately had his hand raised after all three judges scored the bout in his favour, earning the Mexican a unanimous-decision victory.

In the first fight of the evening, it took until the second round for the action to pick up, with local lad and West Ham United supporter Fred Pullen knocking down Italian opponent Leonardo Faretina in the round's opening seconds.

With the Copper Box just a stone's throw from West Ham United's London Stadium, Pullen was right at home in east London as he put on a mature display of his skills.

The West Ham supporter duly had his hand raised after four rounds, completing a successful professional debut on home soil.