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Former Prizefighter winner Rocky Fielding returned home to Liverpool today at the top of another Prizefighter bill, and scored a rather one-sided fifth round stoppage win over veteran Carl Dilks, winning the vacant English super middleweight title.
Fielding (12-0, 6 KO) was able to overpower Dilks (16-6, 5 KO) from the get-go, starting fast and never really easing off the gas. The 29-year-old Dilks did have a bit of success after the opening two rounds, scoring with a few clean shots of his own, but Fielding took them well and then put the pressure on, flooring Dilks twice in the fifth round to secure the win.
There's a solid 168-pound scene domestically in the UK, but truthfully, Fielding doesn't seem too far off from possible British title contention. That belt was recently stripped from George Groves, and will be decided between Kenny Anderson and Robin Reid on October 20 in Sheffield on the Brook-Saldivia show. Given another year, there's no reason right now to expect that Fielding won't be mixing in with the top level of the domestic ranks at 168 pounds, or even 175. He's got talent and he's been handled well thus far.