Martin Hillman has warned his opponents that he doesn’t plan to lose his Featherweight International Challenge Belt after claiming the title last month.

The super bantamweight boxer beat David Hoppal at the Prince Regent Hotel in Essex to take home the vacant belt.

A flurry of punches in the third round proved too much for Hoppal, who had won five of his six fights ahead of the Hillman clash.

Hillman, who was born in Sidcup, was delighted after defeating the “dangerous” Hungarian.

He said: “It feels great to have this belt, it looks good in the trophy cabinet.

“The atmosphere was unbelievable, it was absolutely rocking. I had a lot of people come to support me which was great and I thank them because the atmosphere was fantastic.”

After a rapid start from Hoppal, Bromley-based Hillman gradually fought his way into the fight and began to dominate.

Hillman says he was never too concerned, even though he admits his international opponent carried a heavy punch.

“He was coming in very low, swinging in big punches. He was dangerous early on and clearly came to win,” the 25-year-old said.

“He came out fast and in the first round he put a lot of pressure on me, it was all action.

“I just had to be a little careful not to get hit by one of his big punches.

“He was grabbing on and we were getting a bit tied up. Perhaps it was a clash of styles – you’ve always got to adapt to different styles and that was certainly the case against Hoppal.”

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Hillman added: “I picked him off more in the second round. My trainer told me not to get involved with his antics and just to concentrate on my game.

“Then I got the better of him. I caught him with a couple of heavy punches in the third round which knocked him back to the ropes.

“It was a flurry of answered shots in the next round and the ref had to stop the fight.”

Hillman, a former Darrick Wood pupil, lost his first fight in the professional ranks in 2011 but has since won six of his seven bouts.

His third straight victory against respectable fighters ensured he moved up to 13th in the British rankings for his category.

“I was surprising by how much it went up after one fight but that’s the reward for beating a decent opponent and winning a belt,” he said.

“That’s a lot of progress in a small time and a big moment for my career.”

A former member of the Eltham ABC gym and Body Shots in Crayford, Hillman’s career is on the up although he remained coy when asked about his next fight.

“We will see what comes up,” he said. “I’ll have a chat with my manager and it could be a title defence or just a normal fight to get my ranking up even more.

“I’m more than happy to make a defence of the belt. I’ve earned the belt and I want to keep hold of it – unless something bigger comes up I’d like to make a defence.”

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