Nick Ball retained his World Boxing Association (WBA) featherweight belt with a technical knockout over Ronny Rios on Saturday at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, United Kingdom. 

The British fighter stopped the American in the tenth round after a tough fight full of exchanges in which he was superior at all times until the victory in the final part of the bout. 

Ball came out with his aggressive style and began to overwhelm Rios from the start of the fight. He knocked him down for the first time in the third round, then in the seventh round and also managed to send him to the canvas in the tenth. 

The 27-year-old monarch was always on the front foot and was undaunted by Rios’ counter-attacking responses. Ball was dealing with a profuse bleeding in his nose but was able to overcome the situation to continue attacking and hurting his opponent until the visitor’s corner decided to abandon the fight. 

The champion remains undefeated with 21 wins and 1 draw, in addition to having scored his 12th knockout. For his part, Rios left his record at 34 wins, 5 losses and 17 knockouts.