The rugged Argentinian, who is causing a stir in the division due to his devastating punching power, excited the crowd once again with some huge combinations that had Peterson in trouble every time they landed.
In saying that, it was a glancing blow in the second round that caused the first knockdown, although Peterson never recovered and the writing was on the wall going into the third session.
A crunching shot put Peterson down hard early in the round, with the IBF belt holder’s head snapping back on the canvas. After referee Steve Smoger allowed him to go on, Matthysse duly ended the fight with his next clean punch.
‘The Machine’ was dubbed the new Manny Pacquiao by promoter Richard Schaefer after the fight and now moves on to a WBC and WBA title chance against Garcia after missing out on Peterson’s strap – which wasn’t on the line.
