Joe Joyce knocks out Michael Wallisch in third round of warm-up win ahead of Daniel Dubois showdown

Joe Joyce scored a third round TKO win over Michael Wallisch to stay on course for an October meeting with Daniel Dubois.

The 34-year-old ended the contest with a vicious right and body shot to end the German's challenge at the BT Sport Studio in Stratford as boxing continued behind closed doors in the capital.

Joyce, who had not fought in over a year before tonight, was made to take a couple of stiff rights from Wallisch early in the contest as he sought a huge upset.

The 2016 Olympian found his rhythm however and dropped his opponent three times before the referee called the contest off.

It was a devastating finish from the Putney fighter; landing the thunderous shot upstairs before immediately following it up with one to the body that saw Wallish crumble to the mat.

Joyce and Dubois are scheduled to meet on October 24 in a bout twice rescheduled this year due to the coronavirus.

Due to the delays, both men opted for tune-up fights ahead of their all-London showdown that will move the winner into the frame for a world title shot.

Joyce took care of his side of the deal on Saturday night with it now over to Dubois to do likewise when he takes on Erik Pfeifer on August 29.

Earlier on the card, middleweight prospect Denzel Bentley extended his professional record to 13-0 after stopping Mick Hall.

The Battersea fighter has stopped 11 of his opponents with Hall's team pulling their man out at the end of the sixth round.

The hard-hitting Bentley blasted his opponent with power shots throughout the contest with victory moving him into the frame for a British title shot.

Streatham's Chris Bourke meanwhile claimed the vacant Southern Area super-bantamweight title with a hard-fought win over Ramez Mahmood.

Mahmood, a school teacher outside of the ring, fought with plenty of aggression, matching Bourke in the volume of punches thrown but his opponent produced the more eye-catching shots over 10 rounds, closing out a 96-94 points win to take the belt.

Super lightweight prospect Henry Turner clinched a unanimous points with over journeyman Chris Adaway in his third professional fight, with Louie Lynn going 4-0 after a second round win over Monty Ogilvie.