SWINDON’S Luke ‘The Duke’ Watkins lost his Commonwealth title after Lawrence Okolie battered his way through to a third-round knockout at York Hall tonight.

A bustling card of boxing in the capital saw British heavyweight names Anthony Joshua, Dillian Whyte and Dereck Chisora all watching from ringside.

Watkins, who was looking for pro win number 14, was aiming to make his own way towards that level of notoriety as he came up against Olympian Okolie, whose WBA Continental belt was also on the line.

But from the opening round the Swindon fighter found it hard to deal with the awkwardness and range of Okolie’s fighting style.

Round two saw Watkins come forward more, but while he did well to get inside the taller man, he couldn’t convert the advantage.

The third round saw Watkins dropped for only the second time in his career after taking a barrage of punches from his rival.

The Swindon man rose from the canvas, only to be put down again by the ferocious power from Okolie, eventually bringing the stoppage after two sickening right hooks with one minute 40 seconds on the clock.

Speaking after the bout, Watkins, for whom it was a first professional defeat, insisted the loss was not too much of a setback.

“Congratulations to Lawrence, he can punch,” said Watkins.

“We are in a division where one punch can turn things around. He hit me with a good shot around the back of the ear and I just couldn’t get my faculties quick enough.

“I’ll have to wait and watch it back before I can see whether there were signs of that shot. I was hit with and that is what happened.

“Nights like this are what it is about. I was on the main stage and someone has got to lose. Tonight that was me but I want to be a champion in victory and a champion in defeat.”

Watkins, who trains out of Paddy Fitzpatrick’s gym on Ferndale Road, said he came up against a tough opponent in Okolie.

“The defeat isn’t going to do too much too me. Lawrence has the backing that he has and he is being fast-tracked for obvious reasons,” added Watkins, who will take a short break before plotting his next move.

“I just need to go back to the drawing board and re-evaluate where we are at now.

“I’d like to get back out in the ring but I have been training for six months, I went over to Poland in January and then into camp with Tony Bellew, it has been non-stop.

“I was due to be out in March but that show got cancelled too. But these things happen and you have to take it as it comes.”