Michael Conlan was viciously stopped in the fifth round by Luis Alberto Lopez during his second effort at a world title in Belfast on Saturday night.
The Irishman packed out his hometown SSE Arena, with around 10,000 crammed into the famed venue. Even veteran promoter Bob Arum, who has allowed Conlan's older brother Jamie to run his career for the most part of late, was in attendance at ringside at the age of 91 alongside Frank Warren's son George.
An early ring walk time of 9pm was delayed by almost an hour for the main event, despite last weekend's Katie Taylor vs Chantelle Cameron fight in Dublin began closer to 10.30pm much to Irish fans' annoyance. But the crowd were in full voice for Conlan as he made his way between the ropes, belting out the well-known Irish anthem 'Grace', before showering him in 'Olé' chants.
