Oakey retains title after scare

Oakey suffered a bust nose in the fight

Tony Oakey survived the shock of a first round knockdown to retain his WBU light-heavyweight title in an all-action thriller against Andrei Kiarsten.

I was knocked down but I was never hurt

Tony Oakey

Oakey had to fight on with serious nose damage which left his face covered in blood for the entire 12 rounds.

The previously unbeaten challenger from Estonia bowled Oakey, who had never been floored as a professional, over in the first and fourth rounds of their encounter at York Hall, Bethnal Green on Saturday night.

But the Portsmouth warrior hit back to have his challenger on the canvas in rounds two and six of an unrelenting clash.

Oakey, who looked the better fighter when he boxed behind his effective jab, eventually took the verdict from all three judges by scores of 116-108, 115-109, and 113-111.