By Mark Vester

British lightweight champion Jon Thaxton's twelve-fight unbeaten streak came to an end at the hands of European champion Yuri Romanov when the two met at the York Hall, in Bethnal Green, London. Thaxton's corner stopped the fight before the start of the sixth-round.

For months, Thaxton had been calling for a fight with Amir Khan. The fighters would trade insults during several media interviews. Thaxton came to fight, but Romanov was sharper with his punches and more accurate. Romanov was a heavy favorite in the fight and it showed.

Romanov's right hands had Thaxton in trouble in the second and once again the third, busting up his nose during the battering. A right hand in the fought opened up a huge cut above Thaxton's right eye. Thaxton had a much better fifth, but Romanov began to target the cut and was able to make the injury worse. Blood was streaming down Thaxton's face by the end of the fight and his corner made a decision to stop it before the sixth.

"I've got every trust and belief in my team - they're in charge, and if it's the right decision then it is the right one," Thaxton told Sky Sports. "I never think I'm going to lose until the final decision. I was just getting into it, and it usually takes a few rounds. He was coming forward - but how long would he have kept coming? I trained very hard and I'm super upset. Of course I'll be back."