Stuart Hall has suffered a points defeat to Randy Caballero in their IBF bantamweight title bout in Monte Carlo.
The Darlington man played his part in a competitive contest, but Caballero extended his undefeated record to 22 matches after the judges scored it 116-111, 116-111 and 118-110 in his favour.
Hall, who was getting an immediate chance to reclaim the belt he lost to Paul Butler in June, was floored in the second by the American, but the knockdown had no impact on his willingness to trade with his opponent.
Much of the middle rounds were close, with Hall responding to everything that was thrown at him, but Caballero was producing the classier work.
Hall found more success in the penultimate round as Caballero showed signs of fading, and, although the scorecards were harsh on the Briton, Caballero deserved to prevail by unanimous decision.
