A bruised Ammann arrived back in Newcastle yesterday after Saturday's bout at Schwerin, Germany, determined not to blame a three-day preparation for the loss.

The 27-year-old's gloves and training gear went missing in Hong Kong on the way to Germany and arrived in Schwerin only hours before the bout.

"I don't think it had anything to do with the prep," he said. "I felt fit and sharp and everything. It was just a bit of bad luck on the night."

Alexeev, who was the world amateur cruiserweight champion in 2005, went into the bout with a record of 18 wins, 16 by knockout, and one loss.

The 188-centimetre bruiser nailed Ammann with a hard left in the opening minute of the bout and the Australian cruiserweight champion never recovered.

"My eye closed up after the first decent punch and I twisted my knee, so after that I couldn't do anything," the southpaw said.

"I couldn't move or see the punches coming.

"I was just a pinata until he put me away.

"But there's no excuses. He was just too good for me on the day."

Ammann accepted the last-minute bout after his fight against Adam Forsyth on December 4 was cancelled.

The loss leaves Ammann's record at 18-3-1.

Ammann's trainer, Peter Hallett, said the loss would be beneficial for his protege's development.

"You can read books about it, you can have people telling you exactly what that level of fight is like but until you actually get into the ring you don't know what it's like," Hallett said.