Suslenkov (15-0, 9 KOs) landed a hard straight right hand and left hook in the second half of the final round. Joyce (16-5, 15 KOs) started waving his right hand to say he had enough. And as he walked backward toward his corner, Suslenkov landed a few more shots before referee Gustavo Padilla halted the bout.

The loss was Joyce’s third in a row and fifth in his last six fights. The stoppage win was Suslenkov’s third in a row. Suslenkov, of Volgograd, Russia, entered the fight as the WBA’s No. 10-ranked heavyweight.

Joyce, 40, boasted a five-inch height and 52-pound weight advantage over the 30-year-old Suslenkov. Many of the rounds followed the same pattern, with Suslenkov being the quicker of the two and landing the cleaner and harder shots through Joyce’s guard, although Joyce had some good moments.

Ultimately, Suslenkov’s speed and combination punching proved to be too much for Joyce.

The bout was the co-main event on the card featuring WBA heavyweight champion Murat Gassiev's title defense against Germany’s Peter Kadiru.