The thousands who packed the Rudolf Weber Arena in Oberhausen, Germany, were sent home happy after heavyweight Agit Kabayel cut through Damian Knyba in just three rounds.

Kabayel was a huge favorite, but Knyba gave him plenty to think about for two rounds – until, ultimately, he couldn’t keep the popular German off him and was swamped in the third.

The first round was exciting, as both fighters came to make an impression. While Knyba had success with his longer shots, clubbing Kabayel with raking hooks and a booming right uppercut at the end, his long body presented Kabayel – a formidable body puncher – with a clear and obvious target.

However, Knyba’s fast start was highlighted by a cut above the favorite’s right eye.

Knyba was inspired, and Kabayel was having difficulty getting inside the New Jersey-based Pole’s longer limbs. Knyba circled the ring, firing out a jab that Kabayel was struggling to work around.

By the third, though, there was a persistent look about Kabayel’s output and signs Knyba might not have been built for a longer fight. As the German started coming forward relentlessly, he opened a cut around Knyba’s left eye and began to turn the screws. It was a long, hard round for Knyba, and he seemed to be winded by a left to the body, and then he absorbed any number of right hands before the referee intervened.

Kabayel is now 27-0 (19 KOs), and as the WBC’s interim titleholder should have plenty of options. The WBC’s No. 1, Lawrence Okolie, was ringside in Germany to stake his claim for a fight. But doubtless Kabayel would prefer a crack at full champion Oleksandr Usyk. Knyba is now 17-1 (11 KOs).

“It’s unbelievable. Look at the crowd – so many people came to support me,” Kabayel said. “Every fight in Germany. Let’s go.”

The crowd called for a fight with Usyk next.

“I waited so long for this title opportunity," Kabayel said. "I beat three monsters in the Riyadh Season [Arslanbek Makhmudov, Zhilei Zhang, Frank Sanchez]. Give me the world title fight. I’m ready.”

Asked whether he thought they could tempt Usyk to Germany for a stadium fight, Kabayel’s manger Spencer Brown said, “I think we can, yes.”