Tszyu (12-0, 10 KOs, 1 NC) told The Ring of a desire to be tested and have an opportunity to showcase the skills he's steadily built over the past three years, after an anticlimactic ending against Michael Zerafa in January left more questions than answers of the 28-year-old.

Yet during a week where older brother Tim headed to Las Vegas, officially announcing his Errol Spence crossroads bout July 26 in Australia, it was 'The Butcher' who excited many more after dispatching of Spain's Oscar Diaz to headline No Limit's latest foray to Newcastle Entertainment Centre, since nicknamed 'Tszyucastle'.

When asked about who is next with a pair of American former champions being linked, No Limit CEO George Rose kept cards close to his chest before replying: "I thought his performance there says that he's ready to keep moving on up, I wanna see how he's pulled up now, looks great, I'd love to get him straight back out as soon as possible."

Diaz (16-1, 6 KOs) headed overseas to box for the first time and sounded convincing in the build-up, insisting he was foregoing his highly-ranked European title pursuit aware that beating a Tszyu would transform his career. That sounded nice in isolation, though Nikita never gave him much opportunity to do his best work from the off.

Diaz landed a jab to the body and head in the opening minute, before Tszyu took control with forward pressure, punctuated by left hands that often found their target flush on the 25-year-old's chin.

Not a minute into the second frame, the younger man was crying foul to referee Will Soulos and pleading his case after a tangle of legs saw him being counted for a clean knockdown.

Tszyu pinned him in the corner and as he tried to evade moving backwards, a one-two combination he didn't see coming sent him down as their legs got caught.

Off-balance but able to gather his bearings, Diaz got back to boxing behind his jab and landed a right hand early in the fourth, though the resistance waned as time wore on. Tszyu rocked him with more ferocious combinations early in the fifth stanza and a stoppage felt inevitable, though a potential flash point was avoided in the sixth.

Team Diaz were angry after seeing their charge hit with a two-punch flurry as he took a knee late in the round, an apologetic Tszyu knew immediately but couldn't stop himself punching mid-flow, though Diaz again beat the official's count and survived more pressure on pure instinct before the round ended. Soulos told the corner's translator he would stop it if matters didn't improve, but they took the decision out of his hands between rounds.

Hooks, curling shots and body work did the trick for Tszyu, who will claim Diaz's top-15 spot with the WBO in next month's rankings update while ageing veterans Keith Thurman (31-2, 23 KOs) and Tony Harrison (31-4-1, 22 KOs) have been linked with a return down under to steal his shine and turn back the clock in high-profile opportunities.

Elsewhere on the card, Callum Peters (7-0, 6 KOs) went the 10-round distance for the first time as a pro and juggled adversity with adventure during a testing but impressive victory (99-90, 100-89, 100-89) over an ambitious but gung-ho Joeshon James display (10-2-2, 5 KOs) as another step-up in quality awaits the 2024 Olympian.

Peters floored the American in round four with body shots, then an impassioned speech from the visitor's corner prompted James to fire back with his best work a round later, before some exciting back-and-forth exchanges in close-range down the stretch meant their middleweight matchup was one you couldn't take your eyes off.

Light heavyweight talent Kirra Ruston (9-0, 9 KOs) put his foot on the accelerator to crunch Turkey's Berkay Varol (9-1, 6 KOs) in three rounds after suffering a nasty cut by a punch over his left eye in the first frame, later admitting he couldn't see clearly with all of the blood but nonetheless the 28-year-old's perfect knockout streak remains.

Super middleweight: Jack Bowen TKO2 (1:43) Tonga Tongotongo

Junior middleweight: Rahim Mundine UD5 (48-47, 49-46, 49-46) Lance McDonald

Welter: Kyron Dryden TKO2 (0:15) Hunter Ioane

Welterweight: Brent Walton MD4 (38-38, 39-37, 39-37) Jayden Vasica

Heavyweight: Brandon Grach TKO3 (1:50) Caleb Tialu

Lightweight: Wayne Telepe MD4 (40-36, 39-37, 38-38) Benjamin Amos