Wardley floors Adeleye in Fury-Ngannou undercard to win multiple titles 

Fabio Wardley retained his British Boxing Boxing of Control heavyweight championship after he stopped David Adeleye in the seventh round in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday evening. 

The fight was the penultimate clash on a night of heavyweight fighting ahead of the 'Battle of the Baddest' between Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou.

Wardley and Adeleye came into the fight with bad blood as both British fighters put their undefeated records on the line.

Wardley's victory over the British Nigerian, helped him to win the vacant Commonwealth heavyweight strap and Adeleye’s WBO European heavyweight belt. and retained his British championship. 

There was speculation ahead of the fight that a cut on Wardley’s chin was so severe that he had been unable to properly train in the weeks leading up to their clash. 

Neither man had been past six rounds in their pro careers, and Adeleye’s early power shots showed why the expectation was that this fight would not go the distance. 

Wardley grew into the first round but both men continued to exchange fierce blows into the second and third, with Wardley improving his range.

The pace slowed in the fourth but the pair of them stayed close and traded with some thumping efforts, with some near-misses likely capable of ending the contest had they landed flush. 

Adeleye was given a final warning in the sixth for what appeared to be the use of the forearm, leaving Wardley seemingly a little stunned. 

In the seventh - the furthest either fighter had been and the longest fight of the night - a left hook set Adeleye to the canvas. 

He just beat the count and the pair then intensified their blows and it was Wardley who became entirely dominant and the fight was done.