Wood (right) knocked down Lara en route to a decision victory
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Meanwhile, at Vitality Stadium – home to Premier League club Bournemouth – Billam-Smith won a scrappy majority decision against Okolie to claim his first world title.
Billam-Smith, in front of a raucous home crowd, knocked down his ex-sparring partner three times, while Okolie also had two points docked for excessive holding. It all led to scorecards of 112-112, 116-107, 115-108 in favour of Billam-Smith.
“The Gentleman” then dedicated the win to his mother, who is suffering from breast cancer, and his son, who turned one year old on Friday.
Elsewhere, Michael Conlan did not have such a happy homecoming. The Northern Irishman, fighting in his hometown of Belfast, was stopped by Luis Alberto Lopez in the fifth round. Mexican Lopez dropped Conlan with a vicious uppercut, and the towel came in as Conlan struggled to find his bearings.
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