Martin Gethin crowned British champion

Gethin's pressure told on Ben Murphy with the belt up-for-grabs in the ninth round as he forced the stoppage, handing the belt the IBF International and two-time English champion what he so coveted.

But Rowley Regis' Welborn's dream of glory ended in a one-sided affair to welterweight champion Frankie Gavin, from Birmingham, going down in the seventh with the referee again forced to step in.

However, Gethin got the job done on Friday night as he defeated Hove's Murphy, a former British title challenger at light welterweight on two days notice against Ashley Theophane in 2010.

Gethin had first shook Murphy in the second with a right hook that forced his opponent back on his toes. He then had to prove his own mettle when Murphy bounced out for the next session.

From the bell, Murphy put together left and right hooks that hit the target but Gethin didn't flinch and his title rival lost heart, knowing he couldn't seriously hurt his co-challenger.

Come the sixth, Gethin was utilising his reach and exploiting his five-and-a-half inch height advantage on the squat stature of Murphy, peppering him with the jab as he looked for openings.

That forced the finish in the ninth when Murphy was trapped in the corner and subjected to a barrage of shots as he tried to escape, forcing referee Marcus McDonnell to jump in.

The man in the middle was needed again when Welborn was stopped on his feet by Ian John-Lewis in the main event after previously being put down by a right hook to the body.

From the opening bell, Gavin's hands and feet never stopped moving as he gave Welborn the runaround, before firing off jabs as he moved in and out of trouble.

Trying to pin the champion down made Welborn look flat-footed, as he employed the tactics that were so successful in Midland title defences against James Flinn and Scott Haywood.

They crumbled when Welborn was given room to utilise his undoubted power, but Gavin used his world-class skills to make sure he didn't go the same way and limited his attacks.

Welborn did land a lot of a right hook to the body in the second round but Gavin fired back with a right uppercut that dazed his opponent, forcing him to clench as he recovered.

Cornering Gavin, Welborn thought his moment had come as he let his hands go but he was swerved by Gavin, who used head movement to spot an opening and jabbed his way out.

It was one-way traffic by the time the deciding moment came along in the seventh round with the shot that dropped Welborn to his knees, although he managed to answer the count.

He clearly hadn't recovered and careered into the ropes under the pressure of more shots and, with Gavin connecting at will despite him covering up, John-Lewis had to act swiftly.

But Walsall's Christopher Keane made it double delight for the town's boxing folk as he became the new area boss after claiming the vacant Midlands cruiserweight belt.

Keane was looking to make a statement against his former sparring partner Shane McPhilbin. The two had trained together before the Nottingham fighter won the British title.

But there was no easy ride from Keane this time and he smelled blood when he hurt McPhilbin with a left hook to the ribs, taking a lot of wind out of the Nottingham man early on.

McPhilbin was floored in the third by a stiff uppercut to the jaw from Keane's right hand but gamely answered the counts before visiting the canvas again, twice, through body shots.

Referee Robert Chalmers gave McPhilbin a fair chance to regroup but had little choice in pulling him out of there after being on the end of a pasting from Keane, who boxes better when relaxed.

Two first round stoppages opened last night before the BoxNation cameras went on the air, with Cannock's Dave Egan and Birmingham super middleweight Andrew Robinson making a statement.

Egan took just 93 seconds to emphatically halt Stock in the first round for his first stoppage in his fourth professional, his previous three wins all coming on points over the distance.

The former Chasetown footballer had a ball and knew he was onto a winner when a stray jab made Stock's eyes glaze over and he piled on the pressure accordingly.

'Handsome Dave' clunked Stock to the jaw with a right hook, after spotting his left hand down as he looked to throw a shot, and repeated the trick to maximum effort.

The third one had all of Egan's might behind it and laid out his opponent, referee Gareth Morris immediately dispensing with the count and calling for medical assistance.

Fortunately, Luton's Stock left the ring under his own steam but left pretty stunned after going the distance in his first and only previous fight, a losing effort to Jamie Zaszlos.

But Egan could not contain his delight after scoring the knockout he so desperately craved and looked to have dynamite in his fists after coming down a weight to light welter.

The 29-year-old was well-received after making his debut at the same venue last year and knows the town well, having previously boxed for Walsall Wood ABC as an amateur.

Leamington Spa's John Mason had no answer to Robinson assaults with hooks to the body and went down three times, the last a flurry from both sides, three seconds before the end of the session.

When the BoxNation broadcast started rolling, Stafford's Grant Cunningham stepped up to six rounds to go up against Mitch Mitchell and shone when pushed by his come-to-fight adversary.

Cunningham put him down on the way, slumping him down into the corner in the fifth round with a stinging right hook to the body in the fourth round, but 'Mad' Mitchell survived to the end.

By Craig Birch