GARY SYKES and Tyrone Nurse  shone on Saturday night – the duo  both recording stoppage wins.

British super-featherweight  champion Sykes was in with  Bulgarian Valentin Stoychev at the  Huddersfield Sports Centre and the  difference in class was apparent  from the offset.

The Dewsbury man picked his  shots wisely but his opponent was  covering up to avoid any serious  damage, only for the onslaught  proved too much in the end.

A bombardment of shots in the  third, including a thunderous body  punch, had Stoychev on the canvas  and he couldn’t make the referee’s  count.

Nurse’s fight with Ben Lawler  lasted a round longer, but he was  equally as dominant.

The Huddersfield light-welter was  easily in control of the fight and is  looking even more confident than he  did earlier in his career.

Lawler was saved by the bell at  the end of the second when Nurse  landed a stunning uppercut.

And the pressure continued  through the third and fourth rounds  until Lawler retired in the corner  ahead of the fifth to hand Nurse his  18th win in 18 pro bouts.

Both were pleased with their  performances and with no boxing  again until September, they eyed  next season.

Sykes said: “Once I got into the  swing of things it was easy. It was a  step down in the class of opponent  for me and that told.

“I’ll be fighting Gary Buckland in  Sheffield in October which I can’t  wait for now.

“I’ll be taking a lot of fans over  there and it’s good that we’re not  having to go all the way to Wales like  we thought we might.”

British Masters champion Nurse  said: “Lawler has pulled out on me a  few times before and when I got told  I was fighting him I was a bit  annoyed because I expected him to  do the same again.

“It was nice to get it out of the  way. By all accounts I boxed pretty  well and applied steady pressure to  him and he’d had enough.

“Over the next  12 months we’ll be  looking for some kind of proper title.  I want some learning fights against  people who aren’t going to come  and just shut up shop.”

Also victorious on the night were  super-middleweights Jason  McCalmon and Alastair Warren.

McCalmon bloodied the nose of  Ian Turnbull and put him down in the  third. He won 40-36.

Warren met Sheffield’s Dean  Walker for a second time and came  through again with a comfortable  points win, 40-37.