Audley Harrison laboured his way to a lack lustre points victory over veteran Julius Francis in the first defence of his WBF heavyweight title at Bristol's Whitchurch Sports Centre last night.
He finally caught up with 39-year-old Francis, flooring him in the final minute of the 12th round after never previously threatening an early finish.
A left flush in the face dropped Francis on the seat of his shorts but the veteran was up at six to last the distance.
Harrison, the Sydney 2000 Olympic gold medallist, has pledged to graduate to the genuine world heavyweight championship within the next 18 months but he still has an awfully long way to go on the evidence of this display.
The three British judges all voted heavily in favour of Harrison, with Larry O'Connell and Roy Francis scoring 119-109 and John Keane giving a 119-108 verdict.