Tyson Fury stopped Deontay Wilder in the seventh round of their WBC heavyweight title fight in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
Referee Kenny Bayless stepped in to call a halt after Wilder's cornerman Mark Breland threw in the towel.
Fury had dominated the fight up to that point, knocking Wilder down twice - first in the third round and again in the fifth. He also won every round.
That initial knockdown, which came via a right hook to the American's head, looked as though it caused his ear to begin bleeding. He looked uneasy on his feet thereafter, struggling to keep his balance.
The fight was stopped with Wilder on the ropes unable to answer Fury's punches. Had it not ended there, it's likely the bout would not have continued much longer.
Still, Wilder was frustrated with his corner's call and immediately asked "Why'd you do that?" There was also disagreement within Wilder's corner team regarding the decision.
"Mark threw the towel," Wilder's head trainer Jay Deas said at the post-fight press conference.
I didn't think he should have. Deontay is a 'go out on his shield' type of guy and he would tell you straight up, 'Don't throw the towel in'.
You've also got to consider that Deontay is a fearsome puncher. That's always a difficult thing because he does always have that shot to land a big shot and turn things around.
I'm the head coach of the team but we do things a little bit differently. 99 per cent of the time, the head coach of the team is also the guy that's the lead in the corner. Ours is a little bit more like American football where the head coach doesn't necessarily call the plays - you have an offensive and defensive coordinator.
During the round, Mark said something about possibly throwing the towel in and I told him, 'Don't do that'. Then the fight went a little bit longer and then I saw the towel go in. I haven't talked to Mark about it but we will talk about it and figure out what exactly happened there.
Deas explained that Wilder had suffered "a small cut inside the ear" which "may have affected his equilibrium".
Wilder now has 30 days to decide if he wants the trilogy fight with Fury. "You will see these guys in the ring again," said Wilder's manager Shelly Finkel.
“I just wish that my corner would’ve let me go out on my shield. I’m a warrior. That’s what I do.”
Deontay Wilder after losing to Tyson Fury. #WilderFury2 pic.twitter.com/5QpChJgjK8— ESPN (@espn) February 23, 2020
