Denzel Bentley found redemption within the Magnificent 7 series.

A tenth-round knockdown paved the way for a unanimous decision win over Brad Pauls. Scores were 117-110, 116-111 and 115-112 for Bentley (21-3-1, 17 KOs) in their TNT Sports/DAZN main event Saturday at OVO Arena Wembley in London.

The British and European middleweight fight—which also served as a WBO eliminator—a little more than a year after Bentley was all but written off. He suffered an upset points loss to Nathan Heaney (18-1-1, 6 KOs) on a Magnificent 7 show last Nov. 18 in Manchester.

Three straight wins have followed, including his strong showing on Saturday. Bentley jumped out to a strong start versus Pauls, who drew with and defeated Heaney via 12th round stoppage in successive fights earlier this year.

Pauls struggled with his timing in the early rounds, as he missed wildly with power shots. Bentley offered a more disciplined approach. The former WBO middleweight title challenger used his jab to set up left hooks to the body and right hands upstairs.

Bentley was left on the defensive in the third, as Pauls intensified his attack. Pauls shook off a right hand to land one of his own followed by a left hook as Bentley was off the mark with his overhand right.

Pauls seized control in the middle rounds as Bentley’s output decreased. Momentum changed in the second half, however, as Bentley managed to shift into second gear.

The pivotal moment of the all-UK matchup came in the tenth. Bentley went on the attack early in the round, while Pauls covered up to minimize the damage. Pauls landed a looping left and straight right midway through the frame. Bentley drew a rise from the crowd with a double jab forced Pauls to take a knee inside the final minute. Bentley let his hands go in the final 40 seconds to punctuate a huge round.

Pauls threw caution to the wind in the final two rounds, the realization that the fight had slipped away on the cards. Bentley was prepared for the incoming and always had a response. Pauls bobbed and weaved but couldn’t time Bentley’s jab well enough to counter with anything substantive.

Bentley opened the twelfth and final round with a classic one-two. Pauls reached with his jab but failed to put a power shot behind it. Bentley was composed but not to the point of coasting to the finish line. Right hands continued to fly, to keep Pauls honest before he used lateral movement to reduce the chance of getting caught with a counter.

Saturday marked the first decision win for Bentley since May 2022. He’s since claimed four knockout victories and twice lost on the cards—last year’s setback to Heaney and a Nov. 2022 defeat to Janibek Alimkhanuly (16-0, 11 KOs), The Ring No. 1 middleweight, in a failed WBO middleweight title challenge.

Bentley is now right back in the title picture. A rematch with Alimkhanuly would also come with the IBF title at stake should the two meet sometime next year.

Pauls (19-2-1, 11 KOs) snapped a four-fight unbeaten streak with the setback.

Also on the show, Sam Noakes (16-0, 14 KOs) outpointed Ryan Walsh (29-5-2, 13 KOs) over twelve rounds. Scores were 120-108, 120-108 and 119-109 for Noakes, who will eye a lightweight title fight in 2025.

Interestingly, his likeness appeared on a fight poster circulated by Turki Alalshikh, The Ring’s new owner and chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority.

Alalshikh revealed a lineup change involving a new opponent for Serhii Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs), The Ring’s No. 6-rated junior middleweight, on the undercard of the Dec. 21 Oleksandr Usyk-Tyson Fury Ring/unified heavyweight championship rematch in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The poster suggested that Noakes was due to challenge WBO lightweight titleholder Denys Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KOs), No. 6 at 135 by The Ring.