Liam Smith offers rival Chris Eubank Jr rematch advice after "damaging" defeat

24 January 2023 , 17:32

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Liam Smith offers rival Chris Eubank Jr rematch advice after "damaging" defeat

Liam Smith has offered a rematch to rival Chris Eubank Jr after viciously knocking him out in their pay-per-view grudge fight on Saturday night in Manchester.

The former world champion was a slight underdog heading into his fight with Eubank Jr, but brutalised him in the fourth round to land one of the biggest victories of his career in front of a packed out AO Arena. However, prior to the bout they had agreed to a rematch clause, which Eubank Jr is expected to exercise for a second bout.

Both men have already expressed interest in fighting at Anfield, the home of Liverpool FC, if the bout is to happen again, although weight will be an issue. It is believed that draining himself to middleweight leaves Eubank Jr compromised, while Smith had most of his career success at super-welterweight and is not considered particularly big at 160lb.

Asked by the BOXXER YouTube channel if he thinks Eubank Jr should take the rematch, Smith said: "No, but do I think he will? Yes. But then he's got to sit down because that is a big, big, big defeat for his pride, his ego, his career. To go back and see himself like that, stumbling around the ring, not knowing what's going on and still wanting to fight after it's been stopped.

"That's going to be damaging for his pride and it will take a lot to come back from for Chris. Because he's known for his chin, and he probably had been drawn into, even look at his persona beforehand, he said I'm not as strong and I can't hurt him, he said he's never been hurt, buckled, dropped and this. He's just had all of them moments in one night in front of 20,000 people. That's a damaging loss for Chris to come back from."

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Liam Smith knocked out Chris Eubank Jr on Saturday night (Getty Images)

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Speaking on social media after the loss, Eubank Jr appeared keen to make the rematch happen, saying: "Congratulations to Liam tonight, nice lil' shot you caught me with there my boy. Felt like I could have kept going but referee is in charge and I respect his decision. We’ll get it on again soon."

In an interview with Sky Sports, he also claimed that the loss was a result of a "slip". "I was dominating the fight and then I got caught. In my mind, I'm still the better fighter," he explained. "Obviously I wouldn't have much of an argument after a loss, but I have an argument to prove I'm the better fighter.

"He caught me with a once-in-a-lifetime shot. I feel like I was dominating the fight before that happened. Liam came at me again, threw a bunch more punches, I slipped and then the referee stopped it."

Donagh Corby