Andre Ward overpowers Chad Dawson to retain titles

Andre Ward produced a dominant performance to beat fellow American Chad Dawson in 10 rounds and retain his WBA and WBC super-middleweight titles.

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“I love to win. Finishing guys is the last piece of the puzzle”

Andre Ward

Dawson was put down in the third and fourth rounds and despite beating a count when he went down in the 10th, Dawson signalled he had enough.

The victory in Oakland was a 26th successive win for unbeaten Ward, 28, who beat Carl Froch in November 2011.

It was the first time in three years that Ward has won with a stoppage.

"These kinds of fights, you've got to take risks. You can mess around and lose your title to a fighter of that calibre," he said.

"I love to win. Finishing guys is the last piece of the puzzle."

World light-heavyweight champion Dawson, 30, had dropped down to the 12-stone division for the clash.

After the fight he confirmed he will be returning to the light-heavyweight division.