Austin Trout hailed "a dream come true" after his unanimous points victory over Miguel Cotto in the welterweight division.
The unbeaten southpaw claimed that the Madison Square Garden win against the Puerto Rican was the toughest contest of his 26-fight career.
"I've been preparing for this fight for my entire life. Fighting Miguel Cotto is a dream come true, it was the hardest fight of my career," said Trout.
"I had to show him I was the bigger guy and push him back a couple of times to show him he had no advantage."
The loss was Cotto's second in succession, having been beaten by Floyd Mayweather Jr in May.
