Devine delight as he earns Tortladze triumph

Speaking after the bout, Devine felt he hadn’t quite been at his best, but was delighted to walk away with another title after he triumphed 100-89 on the judges’ scorecard.

The Lutonian said: “It was tough, but I knew he’d be tough as I watched a video of him and said he’d be game.

“He came out swinging and I couldn’t really get going.

“I had felt great, but on the day, my legs were heavy and it took me a couple of rounds to get into it.

“I haven’t done a 10-rounder in a long time so wanted to pace myself.

“I started stepping it up and could have done a bit more, but I got the win and won every round.”

Devine earned a ninth-round knock down with a cracking right hand just before the bell as Georgian Tortladze could recover on his stool during the interval as the Luton fighter who increased his record to 11 wins from 12 fights.

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