Chris Eubank Jr was dropped and stopped by Liam Smith in the fourth round of their grudge fight.
The opening nine minutes had been evenly fought in Manchester before Smith launched what proved to be a fight-finishing attack. He dropped Eubank Jr to leave the son-of-a-legend staggering around the ring.
He was able to convince the referee he was able to continue but he soon hit the canvas again to leave the official with no choice but to end the bout.
Eubank Jr was fighting for the first time in almost 12 months having seen his clash with Conor Benn postponed last October when his rival failed a drug test. Smith on the other hand had fought twice since Eubank Jr’s last outing with both men aware defeat would send them back to the drawing board.
An already tense build-up descended into disgrace in the 48 hours before the first bell when Sky Sports were forced to apologise for “homophobic” comments issued during the press conference. Smith later apologised before Eubank Jr wore a rainbow armband to weigh in on Friday.
But the rivals touched gloves before the first round as Eubank Jr looked to establish his authority with his jab. It was Smith who landed the best shot of the session, however, when a right hand gave his opponent food for thought.
The second round followed a similar pattern with Eubank Jr the busier fighter; but Smith the more accurate with his hands. But Eubank Jr improved in the third, punctuating it with a series of accurate uppercuts as he made his presence felt.
But Smith launched a stunning attack in the fourth, dropping Eubank Jr with a huge left hook following a barrage of shots in the corner. Eubank Jr was out on his feet but battled on bravely before another salvo saw him tumble to the ground before referee Victor Loughlin stopped the fight.
On the undercard, Richard Riakporhe set up a cruiserweight world title shot with a fourth-round stoppage of Krzysztof Glowacki. Rakporhe staggered the former world champion in the second round only for the Pole recovered well.
But he couldn’t withstand the Londoner’s power for long with the referee stepping in during the fourth round following another onslaught. Riakporhe will now target a shot against either of the four reigning champions with IBF ruler Jai Opetaia his most-likely opponent.
