Shawn Porter: 'The opportunity was here and I stepped up to the plate'

Shawn Porter was supposed to be a showcase opponent for Devon Alexander last night at the Barclays Center, but the Akron, Ohio fighter pulled the upset, beating Alexander to win the IBF welterweight title and stay undefeated, 51 weeks after it looked like he might be headed for flop status after a draw with Julio Diaz.

Porter (23-0-1, 14 KO) came out aggressively and put Alexander (25-2, 14 KO) on the back foot early, hurting him repeatedly in the opening rounds and setting the tone for the rest of the fight.

Porter believes his size helped him.

"This is a blessing. We wanted to come out here and establish that I was the better fighter and we made it happen," Porter told Jim Gray of Showtime. "I think I was able to control the fight because of my experience and I'm the bigger guy. We did what we had to do. I paid my dues. The opportunity was here and I stepped up to the plate."

Porter, 26, now looks forward as he's joined the top-level welterweight mix. Will he be a major target for more established names who might see the upstart as an easy mark to grab a belt? Does he have more winning nights against top opponents coming?