Reigning IBO light heavyweight champion Igor Mikhalkin (21 fights, 20 wins, 9 KOs, 1 defeat) retained his title against Doudou Ngumbu (35 fights, 31 wins, 14 knockouts, 4 defeats) last night. 

Mikhalkin dominated the fight at all times and won in the end clearly with scores of 117-111 and two times 116-112.

For Mikhalkin it was the first title defense since he won his IBO world championship title in May with an impressive showing against highly regarded South African contender Thomas Oosthuizen.

Now the boxer wants to unify his title with the other champions at the weight.

"I am very happy. To win a title is one thing, to defend the belt is a whole different challenge. I'd like a unification fight next year," Mikhalkin said, and names like Adonis Stevenson and Artur Beterbiev were names as the targets at light heavyweight.

Mikhalkin had beaten Beterbiev more than once when they were amateurs.

Promoter Erol Ceylan is proud of his world champion -  "I have great confidence in the abilities of Igor. I know he can always pick up the pace and adjust perfectly to the opponent during a fight. He can be very dangerous for many in the world class."

IN OTHER NEWS: Derry super-bantamweight Tyrone McCullagh is keen to challenge for major titles in the new year after extending his undefeated record to 9-0 on Friday night in Belfast.

The former European amateur medallist halted the previously-undefeated Tom Tran of Germany inside five rounds in a headline bout at the Devenish Complex.

With Belfast boxing experiencing a boom period, McCullagh – who is based out of Belfast’s famous Holy Family gym, training under the Storeys – is eager to see his name in lights alongside former Irish amateur colleagues such as Michael Conlan, Jamie Conlan, Paddy Barnes and Carl Frampton.

“Boxing is a short sport in terms of how long you can compete at the top,” said McCullagh. “I’m not in it to win local titles. I want to win British and European titles and then take it from there.

“With a performance like that I think I can, but I’ll need another step up in my next fight and we’ll gauge it from there. But it’s a sign I’m going in the right direction.”