Molina (25-3, 19 knockouts) had fallen behind in the fight against the busier Adamek (50-5, 30 KOs), but one right hand over Adamek’s lowered left changed all of that. Adamek went down hard but rose up on unsteady legs, prompting the referee to halt the bout.

The loss sends the 39-year-old Adamek to his third defeat in four fights, possibly signaling that retirement is near. The stoppage was just the second such loss for Adamek, who was stopped by the much larger Vitali Klitschko in 2011.

Molina, 33, of Raymondville, Texas, now has a significant win on his record and has won two straight since his knockout loss to WBC heavyweight titleholder Deontay Wilder in 2015.

On the undercard, unbeaten Polish cruiserweight Michal Cieslak (12-0, 8 KOs) scored a statement making knockout win against former cruiserweight titleholder Francisco Palacios (23-4, 14 KOs). Palacios, who is known in Polish boxing circles for his two tough challenges of Krzysztof Wlodarczyk, was stopped in round four.