Chris Eubank Jr eyes Billy Joe Saunders rematch after impressive 12th-round stoppage of resilient Russian Dmitry Chudinov
Eubank won the interim WBA middleweight title in devastating fashion
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Your support makes all the difference.92 days after suffering the first defeat of his career to Billy Joe Saunders, Chris Eubank Jr returned to winning ways with a devastating 12th-round stoppage victory over the previously unbeaten Russian Dmitry Chudinov to win the interim WBA world middleweight title at the o2 Arena on Saturday night.
"I'm ready for redemption. Billy Joe Saunders I'm coming for you," Eubank Jr said to BoxNation after his most accomplished performance. "I want a rematch.
"I know what Billy is about, and the boxing public know that I'm a league above him. I now know I can go 12 rounds and turn up in the 12th."
The 25-year-old Eubank’s record now stands at 19 wins from 20 fights. He shaded a cagey opening round, rocking his previously unbeaten foe with an impressive combo as the bell sounded.
Again, Eubank took the second, the face of Chudinov increasingly reddening with a cut to his left eye.
Chudinov continued to charge forward, but while they were guarded in the early stages, Eubank’s favoured uppercut began to creep through the Russian’s tight guard.
Unlike that loss to Saunders, who was an eager spectator at ringside, when he took six rounds to get going, Eubank was bossing the fight before the end of the fifth.
Toying with both his opponent and the o2 crowd, showboating Eubank looked on the edge of a triumphant stoppage on more than one occasion in the sixth, but teak-tough Chudinov showed his mettle.
Chudinov’s left eye was assessed before the start of the eighth, and after another flurry of Eubank strikes, his gumshield was soon on the canvas.
Undeterred from the punishment he had received for the much of the previous 10 rounds, Chudinov continued to plough on forward, though Eubank would block his danger shot – the straight left, with ease.
Winning on all of the three judge's scorecards, would Eubank sit behind his jab and see out the final round? Not a chance. Two minutes and 11 seconds of brutal non-stop assault from the rapid Eubank forced referee Mikael Hook to finally step in and bring a halt to the proceedings.
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