Eastman was in majestic form and thoroughly enjoyed his third outing since his failed bid for the WBA title against William Joppy in November 2001.

The 'Battersea Bomber' took time to recover from that narrow loss and found a new trainer in Robert McCracken - the man he beat to win this same title two years ago.

Eastman started slowly but began landing at will as the brave Frenchman could do little but soak up his accurate shots.

The 31-year-old, clearly keen to get a few rounds under his belt while he prepared for another assault at a world title, gradually began to increase the pace and it became clear that Tendil was being outclassed.

The Frenchman possessed a modest 15-7 record with only two knockout wins so it was always going to take a major improvement to cause Eastman any trouble.

By the fourth round Eastman decided to finish the job and landed two right hooks, which knocked his opponent backwards and signalled the beginning of the end.

Although Tendil rallied briefly, Eastman ploughed forward, constantly landing his sharp right until the bell gave Tendil some respite.

But Tendil had suffered some damage to his jaw and on the advice of the ringside doctor the fight was stopped, allowing Eastman to raise his record to 35 wins with just one defeat.

Eastman said: "I thank my trainer Robert for putting me in the best physical and mental shape of my life.

"I have been boxing since I was six years old and he is enabling me to realise my dream."

McCracken is anxious to lift Eastman back into world-title contention.

He said: "We are confident that Howard is the best middleweight in the world and I'm sure he will get the chance to prove it." (BBC Sport).