Cherneka Johnson left it out of the judges' hands this time as she stopped Nina Hughes in the seventh round to retain her WBA bantamweight world title in Sydney, Australia.

The fight took place on the undercard of George Kambosos Jr-Jake Wyllie at the Qudos Bank Arena and was streamed live on DAZN.

Perhaps trying to appease her own anxiety about what the outcome of their rematch would be, Hughes strolled to the ring to the sound of Bob Marley's 'Three Little Birds'.

Hughes (6-2, 2 KOs) had spoken in the build-up, however, about her worry the judges wouldn't be fair for a second time. Their first fight ended in controversy after some tight scores were originally read out in favour of the Brit before ring announcer Dan Hennessey corrected himself and awarded the fight to Johnson (17-2, 7 KOs).

There was to be no controversy tonight.

And there was to be no feeling-out process in the first round, as both women came out and threw with frequency and ferocity from the off. Johnson looked to overwhelm her opponent with activity, and while Hughes had to respond in kind with the same relentlessness, it was clear she wanted to work off her jab.

Johnson landed a big right hand at the start of the second but Hughes stood up to it and by the final minute, the champion had slowed a tad and it was the visitor who found home with a nice shot of her own.

The third round, though, was all Johnson. She continued to march forward and dominate on the inside, landing cuffing blows against her smaller, older opponent. By the end of the stanza, the nose of Hughes was bloodied badly.

The fourth was just as dominant for Johnson, who landed a massive right hand and scored with big shot after big shot. The champion was on a mission and the crimson-faced Hughes could only shell up and survive for much of it.

Hughes, clearly uncomfortable, could only hold as Johnson poured on attack after attack, and in the fifth round she had a point taken away for its excessiveness.

The corner of Hughes was one of panic before the sixth. The Essex fighter's trainer Kevin Lilley told her 'you're not good, I need to see something' after Hughes' declaration that she was 'all good' in there.

Johnson looked calm and composed after every round. She was winning every round but the job wasn't done. More of the same came from both women in the sixth. Johnson rushing and landing, Hughes trying to counter but struggling to find the ring space to do so.

And it was in the seventh where things really unravelled for Hughes. Nothing was going the way of the 42-year-old by this point and Johnson's promise to make the fight more decisive held true after Hughes' corner threw the towel in.

Hughes looked a picture of disappointment as she walked back to her corner, but had to accept she performed nowhere near to the levels she did in the first fight.

Johnson, still the WBA bantamweight world champion, will now chase unification fights and can feel relief that the Nina Hughes saga is finally over.

"I'm over the moon, to celebrate this tonight, it feels emotional for me, we just wanted to put it to bed and make sure there was no controversy this time," Johnson said after.

"Whatever my team thinks is best, whichever belt is available I'll go for next, I want them all. I don't want to fight once a year, I want to fight two or three times this year."