Ruslan Chagaev of Uzbekistan defended his WBA heavyweight belt with a first-round technical knockout of Francesco Pianeta on Saturday.
Chagaev dropped Pianeta with two right blows early in the first round, but the Italian-born German got up before the count. Chagaev left him on the canvas again with two lefts before the bell, and referee Jean-Louis Legland had no option but to end the bout.
The Hamburg-based Chagaev improves to 34-2-1 (21 KOs) with his first defence of the belt he won for the second time by beating American Fres Oquendo for the vacant title in Grozny, Russia on July 6 last year. Pianeta drops to 31-2-1 (17 KOs).
Both fighters previously lost to Wladimir Klitschko, Chagaev in June 2009 and Pianeta in May 2013.
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