Photos: Sumio Yamada

In a bout for the IBF interim junior featherweight title, Ryosuke Iwasa (27-3, 17 KOs) scored an eleventh round TKO over Marlon Tapales (33-2, 17 KOs) on Saturday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Iwasa, who formerly held the full version of this belt, was credited with a knockdown in round three, although replays showed came from a head clash (no instant replay used in NY). Iwasa scored a legit knockdown in round eleven with a straight left. Tapales beat the count, but then wobbled and the bout was waved off. Time was 1:09.

At the time of the stoppage, Iwasa led on all three scorecards (97-92, 95-94, 97-92).

“I knew that I had him hurt in the 11th round and I was ready for the finish if the referee had let him keep fighting,” said the 29-year-old Iwasa. “It was a tough fight but I trained really hard for this performance. My height and reach was definitely an advantage. I was able to put my punches together well. He never hurt me but he was still difficult and I had to focus to figure him out.”

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