NOTTINGHAM — Reigning IBO and former IBF junior-lightweight champion Anthony Cacace wades into the lion's den, welcoming former WBA titleholder Leigh Wood's long-awaited return after a 19-month layoff to headline a busy evening of action as Queensberry boast a 12-fight card in the East Midlands, with the final four fights televised on DAZN.

Olympic medallists, highly-rated amateurs and young prospects are all in action, so stay tuned to this page as the night unfolds with undercard results when they filter through.

As a reminder, look at yesterday's weigh-in report with storylines to monitor, including Troy Jones vs. Ezra Taylor for the former's English light-heavyweight title and highly-ranked lightweight contender Sam Noakes' maiden away appearance outside London.

10 months after a painful maiden pro defeat by Ekow Essuman, Owen Cooper (11-1, 4 KOs) produced an impressive 10-round decision win (96-94) over Chris Kongo (17-3, 7 KOs) to kick off the televised portion of tonight's card.

Kongo, who found himself in the who needs him club after skilfully outpointing then-unbeaten Florian Marku 14 months ago, needed more urgency than he gave here.

"Come on Chris, you're waiting too long," is the consistent comment emenating from Kongo's corner, where 10-15 of his team and family members are nervously watching along, as are a few overzealous Team Kongo cameramen. The jab war began early, both being urged to throw their first shot faster in these tense exchanges at middle-range.

Cooper, who would've learned plenty from that aforementioned Essuman experience, was more active and charged forward where possible behind his high guard - every flurry he landed was being thoroughly cheered by the travelling Worcester supporters and Kongo couldn't help but indulge him, when it would be better to keep the 24-year-old at range.

Kongo landed a nice right hand in the first minute of the fourth, but failed to follow it up, as Cooper loaded up with a pair of hooks before they trade uppercuts in the corner, a scrappy back-and-forth on display as Kongo's team lament him 'waiting too long' to engage.

Cooper finished the fifth stronger, connecting on a series of shots getting the crowd stirring with excited anticipation once more as Kongo finds himself guilty, staying too close to the ropes and the optics aren't in his favour. The same sequence repeats itself through six, Cooper doing well with head-body combinations and Kongo is increasingly second best.

Kongo is content to trade fire at close-range, Cooper teeing off with a series of smaller scoring shots and as time wears on, the younger man's imposing his will. Kongo, cut over the left eye, can't move out of the way quickly enough to evade those flurries and his punch power in return isn't giving Cooper much to worry about, as far as trading is concerned.

"You've got two rounds to go," his team remind him at the start of the ninth, though Cooper has built up a lead and there would need to be some turnaround if this didn't go his way. Admittedly a difficult encounter to score, referee Kevin Parker had it 96-94 Cooper.

Sam Noakes (17-0, 15 KOs) capped the non-televised portion with a third-round stoppage win over Czech's Patrik Balaz (13-5-1, 5 KOs), which felt eerily inevitable from the opening minute. He scored an early knockdown and picked his punches at will, whether chopping rights or uppercuts, penetrating the 26-year-old's defences whenever he pleased.

After a peculiar scenario deep in the third, it was all over. Noakes looked over to the referee, who motioned for him to step away, having pinned Balaz in the corner before the unheralded visitor fell to the canvas on his own. The referee counted him out, meaning the British, Commonwealth and European lightweight champion's 2025 is finally underway.

After a four-round decision win over Cristian Uwaka on the Chisora-Wallin undercard, Leamington Spa heavyweight Lewis Williams (3-0, 1 KO) upgraded to six but was guilty of going through the motions en route to a 60-54 win over well-travelled Viktar Chvarkou (5-24, 3 KOs).

Sarginson barked at both to stop their persistent holding, stemming the flow of a stop-start affair, and Williams couldn't mask his frustration as the Belarusian made it messy and the 26-year-old couldn't maintain consistent distance control against a man 13 years his senior.

Although he curled some good shots downstairs and looked threatening in sequences, he must do far better against spoiler-type opposition eager to throw him off his game as was the case here.

Olympic featherweight bronze medallist Charlie Senior didn't have it all his own way despite an early knockdown and applied patient pressure, but would've learned plenty from a frantic six-round debut contest against Cesar Ignacio Paredes - 59-54 the final score.

Six fights into the afternoon's action and we finally had the night's first knockdown. It came midway through the second stanza, Senior catching Paredes with a sweeping right hand he didn't see coming as they exchanged shots. It angered the Peruvian, who recovered well enough to make sustained periods of this encounter a scrappy, overtly physical affair.

Another from the Grant Smith stable, with son and WBC's No.1-contender Dalton also in the corner, Bradford junior-middleweight Harris Akbar flashed his skills and persistently threatened a finish against a brave Octavian Gratii (8-83-4, 3 KOs) during a memorable pro debut.

Pinned in the corner, absorbing combinations midway through the second, referee Darren Sarginson could've easily stepped in but gave him enough leeway and right on cue, the Romanian veteran waded out of danger before gamely beckoning him forward for more.

Akbar had him hurt again in the final frame, though it wasn't enough as the decade-long pro manoevured out of striking range and they went the distance. 40-36 was the final score.

Joe Gallagher-trained Joe Cooper (4-0) boxed to instructions and emerged a 40-36 winner over Dmitri Protkunas (8-20-1, 1 KO) in his latest appearance, three months after twice dropping Artjom Spatar but failing to find the finishing sequence for a long-awaited highlight reel knockout.

The Essex youngster, still only 19, will hope he can soon graduate to the six-round distance, where he'll have more time to break down stiff opposition as he steadily steps up the levels.

Unbeaten Nico Leivars (7-0-1, 1 KO) ended a 14-month layoff with a heated six-round tussle against 40-fight pro Darwing Martinez (8-31-2, 6 KOs), investing early with punishing body shots and seizing advantage as neither was afraid to exchange at close-range early on.

As time wore on and they entered the second-half, Martinez was landing less frequently and the 27-year-old ticked off for dirty boxing in the fifth, their exchanges increasingly scrappy and the Nicaraguan wore the damage across his face. Referee Kevin Parker deemed it 60-55.

In the afternoon's first two contests, it was debut delight for both Joe Tyers and Huey Malone over four and six rounds respectively.

Tyers won 39-37 against Mario Valenzuela Portillo at lightweight, before junior-welterweight Malone didn't lose a round as he also went the distance, emerging a 60-54 victor over Jakub Laskowski.

Welterweight: Owen Cooper PTS10 (96-94) Chris Kongo

Junior-welterweight: Sam Noakes KO3 (2:17) Patrik Balaz

Heavyweight: Lewis Williams PTS (60-54) Viktar Chvarkou

Featherweight: Charlie Senior PTS6 (59-54) Cesar Ignacio Paredes

Junior-middleweight: Harris Akbar PTS4 (40-36) Octavian Gratii

Middleweight: Joe Cooper PTS4 (40-36) Dmitri Protkunas

Featherweight: Nico Leivars PTS6 (60-55) Darwing Martinez

Junior-welterweight: Huey Malone PTS6 (60-54) Jakub Laskowski

Lightweight: Joe Tyers PTS4 (39-37) Mario Valenzuela Portillo