Galal Yafai's world title ambitions faced a significant setback as he was defeated by Francisco Rodriguez Jr in a shocking points loss in Birmingham. The British flyweight, an Olympic gold medallist, was dropped in the final round of a high-tempo contest that saw Rodriguez dominate from the start.

Yafai, fighting in his home city, struggled to handle the relentless pressure and punch volume from the Mexican. Despite moments of resilience, Yafai was repeatedly hurt, notably in the seventh and ninth rounds, before hitting the canvas in the twelfth. Although he beat the count, the result was undisputed with scores of 119-108, 119-108, and 118-109.

Rodriguez, a former unified strawweight world champion, burst out of the blocks, rattling Yafai early with a sharp left uppercut. Yafai's attempts to rally were hampered by a cut above his left eye, and he frequently dabbed at the wound, struggling to match Rodriguez's pace.

By the championship rounds, Yafai looked increasingly resigned to his fate. A clean left-right combination dropped him in the 12th, and he rose with a wry, deflated smile before leaving the ring without a post-fight interview.

Yafai's promoter, Eddie Hearn, commented on the fight, saying, '[Rodriguez] was relentless tonight. Yafai couldn't have got into a worse start but I'm so proud of him.'

In other matches on the card, Britain's Tiah Mai Ayton made a ferocious debut by stopping Hungary's Sara Orszagi, and Manchester's 2024 Olympian Pat Brown secured his second professional win with a brutal second-round stoppage of Croatia's Ivan Duka.