Bolton ended Fleetwood's 18-game unbeaten Sky Bet League One run and gained a vital advantage in the promotion race thanks to a 4-2 victory at the Highbury Stadium.
A freak Bolton goal sparked life into the top of the table clash after an attritional opening period.
Fleetwood had just been foiled in a goalmouth scramble - David Ball unable to pull the trigger in a tangle of bodies - when Bolton launched a quick break down the right.
Adam Le Fondre looked up for support, but seeing none he went for glory himself, finding fortune as the ball struck his standing leg and floated over Alex Cairns and into the far corner.
Three minutes later Bolton looked to be in total control.
Filipe Morais floated a free-kick to the back post, David Wheater stealing through the Fleetwood defence to power home.
Uwe Rosler's unlikely promotion candidates have proven themselves to be stubborn opponents this term.
And Kyle Dempsey was only too happy to prove why.
He showed skill and determination to pick a spot on the 18-yard line, drilling the ball past Ben Alnwick.
The Trotters could have stretched their advantage before the break.
First Wheater rattled the frame of the goal with a stinging effort from 10 yards.
Fleetwood, a man down as Devante Cole lay injured, could not clear, Gary Madine forcing Cairns to tip a header over the bar.
They did find the mark minutes after the restart, from another Morais free-kick, which left Fleetwood in disarray as Mark Beevers crept in at the back post to tap home.
And the victory was completed with 12 minutes to spare, Le Fondre applying a firm head to another dazzling Morais centre.
Bobby Grant danced through tired Bolton bodies to claim a consolation for Rosler's men, who rallied late to save face, but not salvage points.