By Edward Chaykovsky

Former cruiserweight champion Danny Green knew he was in serious trouble by the second round of his title match with Antonio Tarver, which took place last month in Sydney, Australia. Green suffered the first stoppage loss of his 35-fight career and Tarver, the underdog, captured the IBO title with a barrage of punches in the ninth round.

“[In] round one he hit me with a beautiful shot which made me lose my balance and crash into the ropes but I wasn't actually physically hurt, I was more stunned,” Green told the Western Australian. “[In] round two I thought someone had snook up behind me and clocked me with a sledgehammer! I didn't see it coming and it was a shot that would have knocked a lot of people out cold.”

Green plans to exercise a rematch clause to get an immediate return bout with Tarver by the end of the year. He expects the rematch to take place in November or December.