Avanesyan explodes to dispatch Taylor by TKO
David Avanesyan ruthlessly stopped Liam Taylor in a thrilling shootout to defend his European welterweight title at The SSE Arena, Wembley.
The Russian’s destructive power was decisive in a whirlwind couple of rounds as he forced Taylor to take a knee and then stopped his challenger on the ropes as they traded recklessly at close quarters at The SSE Arena, Wembley.
In a blistering opening round, Taylor immediately tried to exchange hooks, and he was soon forced to take a knee after a sharp right hand from Avanesyan.
Taylor clambered to his feet and resumed his defiant attack in the second, but he could not contain Avanesyan, who unloaded a flurry of hurtful shots to prompt the intervention of referee Mark Lyson.
Avanesyan had retained his European belt with another brutal stoppage victory, having halted Josh Kelly in February.
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The 33-year-old could now target another well-deserved world title fight after he was beaten on points by Lamont Peterson in a battle for the WBA belt in 2017.
Avanesyan’s trainer Carl Greaves told Sky Sports: “Listen, you’ve got to be a strong puncher to keep David off, or he will keep walking through you like he did tonight.
“He [Taylor] took a heavy shot and the referee did the right thing, because this man is a great finisher. He’s a predator.
“What is it five stoppages back-to-back? All at a good level. We need to move on now.
“If we can’t move on, we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing until the big opportunity comes up and I’m sure Neil [Marsh] his manager will get him that opportunity.”
