Matthew Macklin: 'I worked hard and it paid off'

Former middleweight world title challenger Matthew Macklin has said that he believes his hard work paid off after an impressive stoppage on Joachim Alcine last night.

The Irishman produced a devastating display to knock Alcine down twice, before the referee stopped the fight with 30 seconds remaining in round one.

"I felt great going into this fight," he told World Boxing News.

"We had been working hard on that shot [the right hand] a lot in training. Stepping to the side and creating and angle. I knew it would come.

"I'm thrilled with my performance and I want another shot at the title which I definitely feel I deserve."

Macklin has almost certainly put himself in with a good chance of another title fight. A rematch with Sergio Martinez is one possibility, as is a fight against dangerous Kazakhstan fighter Gennady Golovkin.

Another potential fight could be a domestic clash with Martin Murray on the forthcoming Ricky Hatton under-card.