Blackpool boxer Jake Darnell suffers first round stoppage to Olympian Frazer Clark on Amir Khan v Kell Brook bill

Darnell was drafted in as a last minute replacement for Clarke, who was also making his professional bow after winning bronze as a super heavyweight in Tokyo last year.

It was always going to be a big ask for Darnell and so it proved, as his corner threw in the towel just two minutes into the fight.

"Darnell is brave, but out of his depth taking some brutal punishment early on," BBC Sport said.

"His corner saves him from any further punishment and after two minutes and six seconds the towel comes in."

Darnell, who plays football for local side Armfield FC among others, had never fought in the pro ranks before, although he has seen some action in various bareknucle bouts.

The fight came on the undercard of the blockbuster match-up between Amir Khan and Kell Brook, which is live on Sky Sports pay-per-view.

Darnell even revealed earlier in the week he attended the public weight-in as a fan before he was called up to fight.

Speaking to Sky Sports after his win, Clarke said: "No disrespect, but I'm under no illusions my opponent was probably a soft touch.

"But I'm in boxing to box.

"The dreaded Covid struck and my original opponent couldn't be here and then there was chopping and changing and other issues.

"It was a bit of a nightmare in the build-up but my job was to get in here and do what I do best.

"I tried to slow it down a bit and not rush, so I had the perfect opponent to do that because there wasn't much coming back.

"I understand there's still a long way to go and I'm not quite where I want to be physically yet, but I will get there.

"This was just a smidgeon of what I'm about. The better the opponent, the better I'll box and this is just the start of the journey."

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