GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - Scott Harrison stopped Samuel Kebede in less than a minute Friday night to retain his WBO featherweight crown and break a Scottish record for world title victories.
In a complete mismatch that ended in boos at Braehead Arena, Harrison floored the Ethiopian twice with punches on the top of the head in the opening moments of the scheduled 12-round fight.
His legs buckled underneath him as he tried to rise and the referee stepped in, much to the crowd's disdain, to end the bout.
After going down from a short right within seconds of the opening bell, Kebede got up quickly and was given a standing eight count. Despite the brief rest, he staggered backward across the ring into the ropes. A soft left hand put Kebede down for a second time.
Kebede managed to get to his feet but was wobbly, and referee Micky Vann called the fight off after 59 seconds.
"I caught him with a right hook on the temple and with the power I generated there was no way he was getting back up," said Harrison.
Despite the devastating shot to the head, the Glasgow crowd looking for more of challenge, booed the outcome vehemenently. In response, Harrison questioned the fans who voiced their displeasure at the early end to the encounter.
"What would you rather me have, a 12-round war or a one-round stoppage?" he said. "He was 24 and unbeaten with 16 KOs and I knocked him out in one round. I've just made history in Scotland so what more do you want from me?"
Harrison improved 23-2-1, successfully defending the title for a third time. Overall, he's won six world title fights in two stints as champion, breaking the record of five he shared with former WBC lightweight champion Jim Watt.
"It's better to win in the first minute of the first round than in the 12th round," Harrison said. "If anyone says it was too quick, that doesn't mean anything to me."
It was Kebede's first loss in 25 fights. Ranked No. 5 by the WBO, he had not fought anyone in Harrison's class and critics said he never should have been in the ring.
"We picked the highest available contender," said Harrison's promoter, Frank Maloney. "I don't think any featherweight could take the power of Scott Harrison."
Harrison is hoping for a unification fight, possibly against WBC champion Injin Chi of South Korea.
The British Boxing Board of Control has confirmed that it will be examining Kebede's credentials, but there are no plans to strip him of his purse.
Both Harrison and Frank Maloney, the Scot's manager, defended the match-up, stressing that Kebede's previous record of 24 fights undefeated proved Harrison's quality.
Kebede's camp added after the fight that they did not believe the bout should have been halted so quickly.
Other action:
Yutaka Niida won a split decision over Juan Landaeta in Tokyo on Saturday to retain his WBA straw weight title.
Venezuela's Landaeta appeared to be on top for much of the fight but was unable to finish off the champion.
It was Niida's first defence of the title he inherited in July when Noel Arambulet was stripped of the title after failing to make weight.
Niida improves to 17 wins, one loss and three draws while Landaeta falls to 20 wins, three losses and one draw.
