Prospect Jesse Hart takes apart Aaron Pryor Jr. in 9th-round TKO victory

LAS VEGAS - Aaron Pryor Jr. is not his dad. Jesse Hart might be his, though.

That much was made clear Friday night in a battle of boxing offspring, when up-and-coming Top Rank

prospect Hart pummeled Pryor for nearly nine rounds before stopping him at 2:51 of the ninth in a scheduled 10-round super middleweight bout at the Cosmopolitan.

Hart, 26, from Philadelphia, more resembled his dad, Cyclone Hart, a rugged middleweight fighter from the '70s. He remained undefeated, improving to 18-0, with 15 KOs. Pryor lost for the ninth time in 29 fights.

It's safe to say Pryor Jr. won't join his father in the International Boxing Hall of Fame. But if Junior has anything, it's a ton of heart. He hung in there for nearly nine rounds under a constant barrage of powerful left jabs, lefts and overhand rights that would have done in most fighters.

Pryor spent much of the night holding his rangy opponent, who kept unloading right from the opening bell. Pryor Jr. gave the ropes a good workout, too, bouncing off them for much of the night trying to escape the onslaught.

Hart, said it was tough keeping his composure while being held much of the night.

"He was grabbing and holding and not fighting," Hart said. " I thought my body shots broke him down, that's why I was able to stop him at the end."

"The whole thing was," he continued, "don't get overexcited."

Hart seldom missed with his favorite punch, the overhand right, which kept Pryor running for his life most of the fight. Pryor's corner was even imploring their fighter to hold more often.

"He hit me in the back of the head all night and nobody did anything about it," Pryor said.

Not that it really mattered.