Beefy Proves He’s Still The Real Deal With Devastating Display

A fight which we never knew we needed, Chris Eubank Jr vs Liam Smith was always going to deliver once it was announced. And deliver it most certainly did.

In a fight week marred with controversy after the two men traded insults, it ultimately ended with a reminder as to why you always have to expect the unexpected in this crazy sport.
 
At 12/1, a Smith stoppage win was, according to the bookies, the most unlikely outcome in this fight aside from a draw. Well, like many, the odds makers couldn’t have been more wrong.
 
Emerging to his trademark entrance song, This Girl by Kungs vs Cookin’ on 3 Burners, Beefy certainly got the party started at a packed-out AO Arena. Eubank Jr followed with his iconic jump over the top rope, a nod to his father’s legendary career, and it was time for the talking to stop.

As expected, the first round started off fairly cagey. Both fighters looked to suss each other out, Eubank Jr much preferring to box off the back foot and flick his jab out whilst Smith was stalking his prey, looking to work his way around the jab and onto the inside.
 
The little success came from Smith whose overhand right landed on the side of Eubank’s head, but the younger man was seemingly unflustered.
 
Round two followed a similar pattern with both looking to work to their own strengths whilst staying patient and waiting for their opponent to commit.
 
Heading into the third round, there was an argument for the fight being all square, but equally a case could have been made for either fighter to be two rounds up. It was that sort of contest.

However, in the third, the tide looked like it had turned.
 
Now finding a way through Smith’s tight guard with his jab, Eubank Jr was stamping his authority on the fight. After dominating the round with his snappy and strong jab, Junior landed some telling uppercuts towards the latter part of the round which Smith did not have an answer for.
 
Then in the fourth round, the unexpected became a reality.
 
Again, boxing nicely off the back foot, Eubank looked as though he was into his rhythm but after getting backed up onto the ropes by Smith, all of a sudden, he was down from a shot that, in normal time, nobody could really see.
 
As he got up, to say his legs weren’t underneath him is probably an understatement. He just about made Victor Loughlin’s count but by the time the ref had waved the fight on, the writing was on the wall.
 
Smith pounced on him like a predator on its prey and before we knew it, the fight was over.

The audience, both inside the venue and watching at home, patiently waited to see what shot had done the damage and then before our eyes it flashed, a left uppercut from the gods which couldn’t have landed anymore perfectly onto the chin of Chris Eubank Jr.
 
A sensational victory in what was widely regarded as the most unexpected fashion from Liam Smith.
 
So, what next? Well, Ben Shalom confirmed before the fight that if Smith was to be victorious, a rematch was set to take place between the pair at Anfield.
 
Whether that fight happens is down to Eubank Jr as it is a contractual obligation that he has the final say on but if not, expect to see Smith potentially take on old foe Kell Brook at either 154lbs or 160lbs in what would be another exciting all-British encounter.
 
Elsewhere on a packed card, Richard Riakporhe once again proved he’s ready for a world title shot with a devastating KO win over Krzysztof Głowacki whilst Ekow Essuman defended his British and Commonwealth Welterweight titles with a narrow points decision win over Chris Kongo.
 
There were also victories for Joseph Parker, Frazier Clarke, Scott Forrest, Matty Harris and Frankie Stringer on a card that will live long in the memory, particularly for Liam Smith.
 

Oscar Bevis 

Official reporter for iFL TV