Dalton “Thunder” Smith (20-0, 14 KOs) retained his WBC light welterweight title with a split decision over former champion Alberto “La Avispa” Puello (25-2, 11 KOs) on Saturday at a sold-out Utilita Arena in Sheffield, England.

Two judges scored the fight 115-113 for Smith, while the third had Puello ahead 115-112. Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing promoted the event, which aired on DAZN.

The opening six rounds were closely contested, with this writer’s unofficial card even after Puello took the fifth and sixth.

Smith responded well in the seventh and eighth, edging the action as swelling appeared beneath Puello’s left eye. Puello answered with stronger work in the ninth and tenth before Smith took the 11th.

In the final round, a left hand from Puello opened a small cut on Smith’s right cheek. Smith began celebrating during the final 30 seconds, although the divided scorecards showed how close the contest had been.

Lee Every refereed.

Giorgio Visioli Edges Maxi Hughes

Unbeaten southpaw Giorgio “The Italian Job” Visioli (12-0, 6 KOs) defeated veteran Maxi “Maximus” Hughes (29-10-2, 6 KOs) by majority decision over ten rounds to win the vacant WBC International Silver lightweight title.

Two judges scored it 96-94 for Visioli, with the third returning a 95-95 draw.

Visioli’s effective jab helped him through much of the first seven rounds. Hughes opened a cut over Visioli’s left eyebrow with a right jab in the eighth, but Visioli responded and finished strongly enough to secure the decision. Kieran McCann refereed.

Shannon Ryan Stops Emma Dolan In Rematch

Shannon “Kaos” Ryan (12-1, 3 KOs) avenged her previous defeat to Emma Dolan (9-2, 1 KO) with a first-round stoppage in their scheduled ten-round super flyweight rematch.

Around 20 seconds into the fight, Ryan dropped Dolan with a right hand to the side of the face. Dolan rose, but another right followed by a left sent her down again.

Referee Howard Foster stopped the contest at 40 seconds after Dolan regained her feet.

Edward Hardy Outpoints Diego Ruiz

Edward Hardy (9-0, 3 KOs) remained unbeaten with an eight-round points victory over Diego “El Profeta” Ruiz (28-16-1, 14 KOs).

Referee Jamie Kirkpatrick scored it 79-73 for Hardy, who controlled most of the action from the second round onward.

Both fighters maintained a high work rate during an active final round, but Hardy finished with a clear points win.

Joe Hayden Defeats Will Harrison

Joe Hayden (25-0, 4 KOs) handed Will “The Thrill” Harrison (8-1-2, 0 KOs) his first professional defeat in their eight-round welterweight bout.

Referee Jamie Kirkpatrick scored it 79-72 for Hayden.

Leo Atang Scores Three Knockdowns In First-Round Stoppage

Nineteen-year-old heavyweight Leo Atang (9-0, 8 KOs) dropped Jonathan “Chicito” Vergara (9-5, 5 KOs) three times before stopping him in the opening round of their scheduled six-round contest.

A right hand dropped Vergara within the first minute. Atang scored another knockdown with a right to the side of the head with approximately 30 seconds remaining.

A third right hand sent Vergara down again in the closing seconds. Referee Jamie Kirkpatrick waved off the fight after Vergara rose, just before the bell.

Chris Mulunda Shuts Out Harley Collison

Chris “Mulla” Mulunda (5-0, 0 KOs) defeated Harley Collison (3-9-2, 0 KOs) by points over six rounds.

Referee Michael Alexander scored every round for Mulunda, returning a 60-54 verdict.
Divine Omojor Wins Professional Debut

Cruiserweight Divine Omojor (1-0, 1 KO) began his professional career with a second-round stoppage of Goran Kozul (8-13, 2 KOs).

Referee Michael Alexander stopped the scheduled four-round bout at 1:52 of the second.

David Diamante served as ring announcer.

Update: Naoya Inoue’s agent, John Lewis, tells The Ring’s Mike Coppinger that he is working with Eddie Hearn and Frank Smith to finalize a deal for Inoue to fight Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in March in Tokyo.

The fight is not yet finalized, but the update indicates that Inoue is pursuing the matchup following the scheduling disagreement discussed below.

Robert Garcia Scrambles To Save Naoya Inoue Fight

Robert Garcia is suddenly scrambling to get Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez into the ring with Naoya Inoue. Not long ago, the trainer talked about making the Japanese superstar hold off until April or May 2027. Now he wants ink on paper immediately because he realized the chance might slip away completely.

Garcia wanted everything on his terms. The catch is that Inoue runs his own schedule. Tell an elite champion with featherweight plans to sit around, and he will just pack up and go.

“Send the fking contract,” Garcia told BoxingScenesuddenly daring Inoue’s side to lock down a March date.

That urgency tells the whole story. Garcia previously wanted another 118-pound tune-up first. By mid-October, he tried shrinking that timeline, telling The Ring that Bam could jump into the ring in December, then turn right around for Inoue in March.

Everyone is wondering if that scramble happened too late.

Giving Bam another look at bantamweight made sense in theory. Jumping up to meet Inoue is a massive leap, so wanting extra prep time makes total sense. Still, that plan only worked if Inoue decided to play along, and the Japanese star already hinted he had plenty of other targets.

Garcia clearly misjudged his leverage. Inoue showed he has zero problem walking away, flipping the entire script. It stopped being about what Bam preferred, turning into a fight to keep the chance alive at all.

Demanding a contract flips the pressure into the public eye. Garcia can claim Bam is ready right now, yet that does not wipe away months of trying to stall for a later date.

Nobody knows if Inoue shut the door for good. Still, the sheer threat of him moving up division ranks gave Robert every reason to panic.

Bam might watch the biggest payday of his life vanish without throwing a single punch. Garcia’s sudden shouting just sounds like a corner realizing their dream matchup will not wait on their calendar.

LIVE COVERAGE

World Boxing News provides live results and a live scorecards from The Belt Collector at the Utilita Arena in Sheffield, England, on Saturday, October 24, as Dalton Smith faces Alberto Puello in a WBC super lightweight world title clash.

Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing promotes the event, which is broadcast live on DAZN.

Smith enters with an unbeaten 19-0 record, while Puello brings a 25-1 record into the twelve-round main event.

The supporting card features Giorgio Visioli against Maxi Hughes for the vacant WBC International Silver lightweight title, alongside Shannon Ryan’s clash with Emma Dolan for the British, Commonwealth and IBF Inter-Continental super flyweight titles.

Edward Hardy, Joe Hayden, Leo Atang, Chris Mulunda and debutant Divine Omojor are also scheduled to appear.

The live scorecard for Smith vs Puello is scheduled for around 22.30 ring walks.

Live Results

All times are BST.

18:10

Middleweight Chris Mulunda remained undefeated at 5-0 with a six-round points win over Harley Collison. The result was never in doubt.

17:36

Dave Allen charge Joe Hayden slugged it out with Will Harrison over eight rounds before scoring a decisive decision in the opener. Hayden dropped Harrison in the first round and displayed the superior skill set to take the victory on the cards and move to 25-0.

Remaining Bouts

WBC World Super Lightweight Title — 12 Rounds

Dalton Smith (19-0) vs Alberto Puello (25-1)

Vacant WBC International Silver Lightweight Title — 10 Rounds

Giorgio Visioli (11-0) vs Maxi Hughes (29-9-2)

British, Commonwealth and IBF Inter-Continental Super Flyweight Titles — 10 Rounds

Shannon Ryan (11-1) vs Emma Dolan (9-1)

Featherweight — 8 Rounds

Edward Hardy (8-0) vs Diego Alberto Ruiz (28-15-1)

Heavyweight — 6 Rounds

Leo Atang (8-0) vs Jonathan Exequiel Vergara (9-4)

Cruiserweight — 4 Rounds

Divine Omojor (professional debut) vs Goran Kozul (8-12)

TV Coverage

The Belt Collector is available to watch live on DAZN, with Dalton Smith and Alberto Puello headlining the Sheffield event.

Follow WBN’s live boxing coverage throughout the night.

About the Author

Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN), a BWAA-acknowledged boxing news website founded in 2010. A veteran boxing reporter with 16 years of experience, he has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside from major events. His work is published worldwide through WBN and distributed on platforms including Apple News.

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.