By Jake Donovan

Royal Albert Hall, Kensington - Wales' Liam Williams delivered a major statement in a two-round destruction of Essex middleweight Joe Mullender.

A pair of knockdowns put Mullender down and out, the latter of the two prompting an immediate stoppage at 1:09 of round two.

Traffic was all one way in Williams' first defense of the British middleweight title, which came in a 10th round stoppage of previously unbeaten Mark Haffron. The Welshman charged forward in the opening round, clearly of the belief that he was too strong for Mullender, who was game but just completely outgunned.

It was never more evident than in the decisive second round. A right uppercut had Mullender on wobbly legs and with each ensuing punch no longer able to defend himself. Williams continued to swing away as Mullender attempted to clutch the base of his opponent's skull, before finally collapsing to the canvas courtesy of a left hook. He somehow beat the count and was permitted to continue, a sequence which angered Williams to the point of jawing at the referee after the stoppage about allowing the bout to linger on longer than necessary.

The defending titlist took matters into his own hands, going right back after Mullender (11-4-2) and ending the fight with a right hand shot which put the challenger flat on his back for the night.

Williams (20-2-1, 15KOs) has now scored four straight wins—all by stoppage—since a pair of losses to Liam Smith in 2017.