Marsili too much for Matthews

Derry Matthews failed in his bid to claim the vacant IBO lightweight belt as he was stopped by undefeated Italian Emiliano Marsili.

Undefeated Italian maintains record with brutal win in Liverpool

Derry Matthews failed in his bid to claim the vacant IBO lightweight belt on Friday night as he was stopped by undefeated Italian Emiliano Marsili in Liverpool. Matthews - who was fighting for his first world title since losing the WBU featherweight belt to Choi Tseveenpurev in 2008 - simply had no answer to the speed and power of Marsili. The Italian was on top from the outset and quickly began to mark his opponent with blood streaming from Matthews' face by the mid-point of the bout. Marsili put his opponent down with a body shot in the sixth and, while Matthews bravely made the count, the referee eventually stepped in a round later after another brutal barrage from the Italian. It was the 24th victory of Marsili's career with the 35-year-old chalking up his tenth stoppage win. "I thought I hurt him but he came back, he's a warrior," Matthews told Box Nation afterwards. "My nose went in the first round, well, it went in sparring but I'm a Scouser and I love fighting. I'm not making excuses, Marsili beat me."