Fan claims footage shows Liam Smith’s fight-winning combination against Chris Eubank Jr was started by a ‘clear illegal elbow’… as Next Gen’s trainer Roy Jones Jr also hits out at the officiating following his fighter’s shock defeat
A fan has claimed that Liam Smith got away with an ‘illegal elbow’ in his stunning victory over Chris Eubank Jr on Saturday night.
After three close rounds in the main event in Manchester, Smith burst into life in the fourth, landing a devastating uppercut followed by a left hook to send Eubank Jr to the canvas for the first time in his career.
Eubank Jr rose to his feet on unsteady legs, but after another flurry of punches, the fight was waved off by referee Victor Loughlin.
![Smith has been accused of using an 'illegal elbow' to set up his fight-winning combination](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/01/24/13/66909389-11670613-image-a-24_1674565484228.jpg)
Smith has been accused of using an ‘illegal elbow’ to set up his fight-winning combination
However, after studying the replay, one supporter believes they have spotted Smith using his elbow just before landing the combination that put Eubank Jr in trouble. Slow-motion footage appears to show Smith attempting to hit Eubank Jr with a left hook, but instead catching him on the side of the temple with his elbow.
It is difficult to tell how badly hurt Eubank Jr is by the stray elbow as he keeps his head low before looking up and being caught by a vicious uppercut. Yet the fan insisted that Smith was very fortunate that it wasn’t spotted at the time.
‘A clear illegal elbow from Liam Smith in the build up to his TKO win over Chris Eubank Jr,’ they wrote on Twitter alongside a video of the incident.
‘I realise the uppercut and left hook combo are what ultimately shut down Eubank Jr but if an illegal blow created the opening for those two shots how does that work?’
The fan’s allegation comes after Eubank Jr accused Smith of being a ‘dirty fighter’ in the build-up to their grudge match.
![Eubank Jr was badly hurt as he slipped to the third defeat of his professional career](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/01/24/13/66909397-11670613-image-a-25_1674565533328.jpg)
Eubank Jr was badly hurt as he slipped to the third defeat of his professional career
Speaking on ‘The Gloves Are Off’, Eubank Jr said of Smith: ‘He is a dirty fighter. I like when I see guys doing the headbutting and the elbowing because that means that they’re not true and when the going gets tough, they look for ways out. They look for ways that they’re not supposed to use.
‘I like watching fighters and seeing them have to resort to dirty tactics because their skill level isn’t enough to get them through the fight so they need to start using their head and their elbows.’
‘Next Gen’ is now coming to terms with his third professional loss, after being beaten by Billy Joe Saunders in 2014 and George Groves in 2018.
In recent years, Eubank Jr has brought boxing legend Roy Jones Jr into his corner, but the partnership has been criticised by promoter Eddie Hearn, who believes Eubank Jr has lost his main assets since changing trainers.
![Eubank Jr's trainer Roy Jones Jr has suggested the elbow affected the fight's outcome](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/01/24/12/66909037-11670613-image-a-8_1674564920417.jpg)
Eubank Jr’s trainer Roy Jones Jr has suggested the elbow affected the fight’s outcome
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/01/24/13/66909393-11670613-image-a-26_1674565558380.jpg)
Speaking on iFL TV on Monday, Hearn said: ‘Technically, Eubank Jr has never been great, but what he always had is a fearless mentality, a great chin and a great engine.
‘What he’s done with Roy Jones is completely take all of those assets away and try and build things that he either hasn’t got or isn’t capable of having.’
Jones Jr has hit back at Hearn’s comments, hinting that Smith’s elbow affected the outcome of the fight, while also sarcastically mocking his own training skills.
Taking to Instagram, Jones Jr wrote: ‘Warning!!!! All boxers!!!!! Avoid Roy Jones Jr as a trainer! Never mind this elbow… just avoid him – Damn, if I can take all that away from a fighter via training, no wonder I raised so much hell in my day!!
‘That almost sounds like Godly qualities, and I’m nowhere near what God is!!!’