David Defiagbon claimed the vacant World Boxing Association championship with a display of consummate boxing class ? but the crowd were robbed of a chance to see more of the champ after the referee called a premature end to his fight.

Defiagbon, a 32-year-old former Olympic silver medallist, was clearly having the best of the top billing bout against Texan Ron Guerrero striking with painful regularity with his left jab.

Following this up with clever combinations, the Nigerian-born Canadian ? roared on by more than a 1,000 fight fans crammed into the CedarBridge Academy gym ? had Guerroro in trouble in the fifth.

Although the Texan brawler looked a little shaken by a powerful combination that ended with a crashing right hook, many in the arena were surprised when the referee stepped in and called and end to the bout and the night?s fighting ? one of the highest-profile on the Island in recent years.

The decision, which was met by a handful of the boos from the crowd, was not welcomed by Guerrero who was convinced he was still very much in the fight.

?I thought he stopped it prematurely,? said Guerrero to Defiagbon in the dressing room after the end of the evening?s activities ? brought indoors from the original BAA field venue due to Saturday?s inclement weather.

A view he also shared with

?I had him in deep water and I was ready to drown him,? said Guerrero, somewhat over-confidently given the number of blows he took to the head through the opening rounds.

?I was working him, there was still a lot of fight left him. Yes, he hit me with a few in a combination but I couldn?t believe it when the referee halted it.

?I was there saying I was ready to fight, it should have gone on. This was a championship bout, the crowd wanted to see a championship fight, I think they missed out because he shouldn?t have stopped it when he did.?

Defiagbon, as you would expect, wholeheartedly backed the referee?s decision.

?No, it was the right time,? said the champ, whose measured words and polite voice come in direct contrast to his strong jabs and vicious hooks and crossed.

?I was in control and I had him in trouble with that last combination. The referee did the right thing for the fight.

?I had gone out too hard, too soon but my corner told me to slow things down and make sure I was connecting with more punches.

?That is what I did and I think I was very much in control. It is a great feeling to win this fight. I will be fighting again very soon and I am still aiming for world titles.?

Asked if there was anyone out there he feared, Defiagbon was defiant: ?I am an Olympian, there is no one that scares me.?

Co-manager Jim Flanagan was keen to talk up his man, who he is keeping busy with fights at least once a month at the moment.

?We are going for world titles, that is what it is all about,? he said.

?He is a good fighter, everyone saw that tonight, and he can go big places in this sport.?

One place it seems certain Defiagbon will be going in the near future, is Bermuda again.

?This is a beautiful place,? he added. ?I want to come back here with my wife. No gloves, no boxing ? just a vacation.?

In the night?s penultimate fight, New York favourite Vinny Maddalone put in a classic display of hard-hitting to dispose of 316 lbs behemoth Joe Lenart.

The 30-year-old heavyweight spent five rounds doing the work of a lumberjack felling an enormous redwood, as the smaller fighter simply set about hacking down his opponent with a seemingly endless stream of blows.

Lenart assumed the role of punchbag within seconds of the first bell, often choosing to simply cover-up his head and leave Maddalone to pound away at his not insubstantial belly.

Maddalone was already way ahead on points by the fifth round, but the expectant crowd were desperate to see the fighter ? with 14 KO?s in his 20 victories ? complete his victory within the distance by slaying the giant.

After a blizzard of thunderous blows, Maddalone finally forced the swaying Lenart down on to one knee in the fifth and the referee rather sensibly called the whole thing off.

?That was my sort of fight,? added the popular and affable Maddalone.

?I like fighters who stay in front of you and box you. I am happy with the result. I just kept pounding away. I thought it might go the distance because the big guy was taking everything ? credit to him, I was landing punches that would have knocked other fighters out but he just kept coming back for more.?

In other undercard fights, Tim O?Neill won by technical knock-out in a super-middleweight contest against Michael Corleone which lacked the intensity of the other bouts.

In the first female fight of the evening, relative newcomer Cindy Serrano kept her unbeaten record with a split decision over the experienced Shakurah Witherspoon in a lightweight fight.

The evening had begun with Willie Broadie?s unanimous decision over Michael Rothberg ? who looked more like a Jerry Springer guest than a boxer ? in a heavyweight match-up.