James DeGale was beaten on points by Chris Eubank Jr in their super-middleweight clash at the 02 Arena.
Former world champion DeGale was down in the second and 10th rounds after being caught by thumping shots.
Eubank Jr’s credentials were questioned after he was soundly beaten by DeGale’s arch-rival and fellow west Londoner George Groves last year.
However, this time he rose to the occasion – albeit against a DeGale who looked a shadow of the fighter who became the first British Olympic gold medallist to win a world title as a professional.
DeGale was wobbled in the opening round and left clinging on several times during the fight, clearly hurt as his opponent tagged him with hurtful shots, including a blistering left which led to second knockdown of the fight.
It was the third defeat of DeGale’s career, with Eubank awarded a unanimous decision – 114-112, 115-112 and 117-109 on the judges’ scorecards.
Earlier in the evening, Putney’s Joe Joyce stopped former world heavyweight champion Bermane Stiverne in the sixth round.
‘The Juggernaut’, in his eighth professional fight, continued to speed towards contention for a world title shot and dominated a largely one-sided bout against his out-of-shape 40-year-old opponent.
He did look worryingly open at times, taking heavy shots from Stiverne in the opening minute.
Joyce responded with big punches of his own and did so again in the second, when Stiverne looked close to being stopped after taking a series of shots – including a blistering uppercut – after which the Haitian-Canadian stumbled back to his corner at the end of the round.
Stiverne was in trouble again in round three and took a count after being kept up by the ropes following a thumping right hook.
Joyce plodded forward in the subsequent rounds and seemed to be struggling to get the stoppage before unleashing a flurry of shots which prompted the referee to step in.
This post was last modified on 24/02/2019