Dave Spencer at ringside

Cruiserweight Youri Kalenga (21-1 14KO) travelled to North America for the first time and successfully defended his WBA interim title, scoring a TKO victory at 1:52 of the twelfth and final round over a game but over-powered Denton Daley (12-1 6KO) who suffered his first career defeat on Saturday night at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.. Kalenga, well nicknamed “El Toro” stormed after the hometown fighter, often missing his mark with wide shots but still doing damage along the way.

Kalenga scored a 9th round knockdown of Daley with a left hand to solar plexus following up with right hand that crushed him down to the canvas. Daley, flat on his back, told referee Charlie Fitch that he was going to get back up and did so at the count of nine, but there was little fight left in the 32-year-old who went down twice in the final round.

Daley looked like a sapling in a wind storm in the final sonnet until the Congo born champion finally put him down. Another shove also put him down moments later, it wasn’t counted as knockdown, but the writing was clearly on the wall. Defenceless, legless, it didn’t take long for Kalenga to step in with the final three punch salvo that had referee stepping in just before Daley crashed to the canvas.