Tony Bellew vs. BJ Flores: Winner, Recap and Reaction

In his first WBC cruiserweight title defense, Tony Bellew scored a third-round technical knockout over BJ Flores on Saturday in England.

UCN Live provided the official result on Twitter:

The bout went as expected, with Bellew dominating from the opening bell. He knocked Flores down four times before it was stopped.

After the win, Bellew decided to call out heavyweight David Haye, per Laceupboxing:

Bellew followed with an impression of a WWE wrestler to get Haye's attention, per Round by Round Boxing:

Haye has fought at the cruiserweight and heavyweight levels during his career, so if he wants to make a match with Bellew happen, the weight shouldn't be a problem.

Bellew captured the vacant WBC Cruiserweight Championship in May with a third-round technical knockout over Ilunga Makabu, ending Makabu's 19-fight win streak with the 17th knockout win of his career.

Even before Bellew won the title, Flores decided the best way to get into Bellew's head was by using social media:

Unfortunately for Flores, Bellew proved he was the superior fighter Saturday. The bout marked another disappointing effort for Flores, who previously lost his interim title match against Beibut Shumenov in 2015.

Never afraid to speak about an opponent, Bellew left no doubt about what his plan was leading up to the battle.

"I am going to smash BJ Flores to bits and be the first man [to] stop him," Bellew said, per BoxingScene.com. "All he keeps saying is that I am a light heavyweight, I am this, I am that, so we will soon find out. He's been mouthing off and following me around for a couple of years, and I'm just a little bit fed up with him now."

Bellew's career began in the light heavyweight division, but he made the jump to cruiserweight after a 2013 loss against Adonis Stevenson.

Regardless of why Bellew felt Flores had to make his weight a talking point, the motivation served the champion well in his victory in front of a raucous hometown crowd.

Saturday's fight marked Bellew's eighth straight win in the cruiserweight division. He's acclimated to the new weight class and will be able to challenge more substantial competition—Mairis Briedis fought on the undercard—moving forward.