Lewis Crocker v Jose Felix: Belfast welterweight maintains unbeaten record with knockout

Crocker has now won 11 of his 19 fights by knockout

Belfast's Lewis Crocker knocked out Mexico's Jose Felix in the fifth round of their welterweight contest to extend his record to 19-0 as a professional.

The 27-year-old took a few rounds to get going in the main event at the Ulster Hall in Belfast.

Crocker then produced a fine left hook in round five to stop Felix and claim his 11th victory by knockout.

But he was unable to pick up the vacant WBO Intercontinental welterweight title after he missed the weight on Friday.

The current WBA continental European champion will have his sights set on world honours in the not-so-distant future after another impressive victory.

"It was a great night, the atmosphere was electric as it always is in Belfast and I got the win in good fashion, so it couldn't have gone better," Crocker told BBC Sport NI.

The first and second rounds were rather uneventful, with Crocker happy to assess the Mexican, who defeated Gary Cully in his last fight, and see what he was up against.

Felix was deducted a point in the third for two low blows, but it was the fourth round where 'The Croc' really took over.

After a succession of clubbing blows, Crocker sent the 31-year-old tumbling to the canvas midway through the round.

Felix survived the onslaught, but the end was near for the Mexican.

It did eventually come in the fifth round, with the Belfast man landing a perfectly timed left hook right on the whiskers of his opponent.

Felix did well to make it back to his feet somehow, but referee Marcus McDonnell had seen enough and deemed him in no position to continue.

When asked about missing weight, Crocker admitted that he was disappointed in the way in which it has been portrayed.

"When I got the phone call I said 147 lbs [10st 5lb] would be tight for me," he conceded.

"I hadn't trained in five weeks, but they [Felix's camp] said the weight wasn't an issue. I went down to 154 lbs, 152 lbs and 150 lbs. Everything they asked, I did."

Crocker continued: "I came into fight week a bit heavier because of the five weeks [off] but the BBBofC [British Boxing Board of Control] wouldn't let me go under 150 lbs.

"I don't want people thinking I was unprofessional, it was not my fault."

There were some impressive performances on the undercard too, with Lisburn's Kurt Walker moving to 10-0 after a points victory over the tough Darwing Martinez.

Limerick's Paddy Donovan secured a 10th knockout, moving to 13-0 after beating Williams Andres Herrera.

But Belfast's Tommy McCarthy suffered defeat in front of his hometown fans, losing via fourth-round stoppage to Cheavon Clarke.

Crocker confirmed that Donovan could be a potential next opponent, but that "everything has to be right" for both parties as he prepares for some time off.

"We both need to be looked after for it as we both know how big a fight it is, but we're willing to fight each other."