CHERNEKA JOHNSON produced a more clinical, but perhaps less clean, performance to halt Nina Hughes in their eagerly anticipated rematch.
The pair squared off at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia, featuring on the undercard of George Kambosos Jr vs Jake Wyllie.
Last May, Hughes, 6-3 (2 KOs), was wrongly announced as the winner, with her opponent then claiming a highly contentious majority decision to secure her WBA world bantamweight title.
This time around, there was no doubt about the result of their clash, but plenty of controversy was still on display.
It was a scrappy opening round, with Johnson, 18-2 (8 KOs), initiating a series of clinches while also using her forearm on the inside.
Neither infringement, however, was flagged up by the referee, and with the New Zealander excessively tying her up, Hughes struggled to build any real momentum early doors.
As if the start to their rematch could not have gotten any worse for Hughes, a cut then opened on the bridge of her nose in the third frame after Johnson came in close with her head.
Ahead of the fourth round, the Brit’s trainer mentioned her two children, hoping to spark a fire inside of her.
But still, aside from her dirty tactics, it was clear to see that Johnson was fighting with far more assertiveness and urgency than she did in their first encounter.
It was truly astonishing, though, when the referee deducted a point in the fifth round from Hughes for holding when her opponent was clearly guilty of doing just that herself.
From that point onwards, it appeared that Hughes had lost much of her tenacity and, in the seventh round, her corner threw in the towel.
