Enzo Maccarinelli needed emergency treatment in the ring after being knocked out in the seventh round of his European cruiserweight title fight with Germany’s Alexander Frenkel. Maccarinelli was knocked out cold in Birmingham and endured five worrying minutes on the canvas after referee Erkki Meronen had amazingly allowed the Welshman to continue after suffering an initial heavy knockdown.

Kell Brook extended his unbeaten record to 22 fights and retained his WBO intercontinental welterweight title with a fifth-round win over Michael Jennings in Birmingham. Sheffield fighter Brook landed a left hand which opened a serious cut around Jennings’ left eye and with blood beginning to pour from the wound referee Terry O’Connor took a quick look before waving the contest off.

Nathan Cleverly kept his unbeaten record intact with an impressive stoppage of Karo Murat in their world-title eliminator. The Welsh light-heavyweight put on a fine display of front-foot fighting to become the first man to beat the German, a former European champion.

Former world champion boxer Ricky Hatton has gone into rehab after battling with severe depression and a drink problem, his spokesman said.

Publicist Max Clifford said Hatton spent several hours speaking to specialists following newspaper claims that the boxer used “industrial quantities” of cocaine on a night out in his home city of Manchester.