Former world champion Liam Smith believes he was physically affected by cutting down a lot of weight for the rematch with Chris Eubank Jr.

Their first meeting, in January, saw Smith score a dramatic knockout victory over Eubank in only four rounds.

The rematch, on Saturday night in Manchester, saw Eubank get revenge with a stoppage win in dominating fashion.

Eubank controlled the majority of the fight, dropping Smith in the fourth and then again in the tenth, before securing the stoppage with a barrage of punches in the tenth. 

From the start, Smith appeared to be having issues with Eubank's accuracy and workrate. After a feeling out process, he began to connect with combinations in third - before dropping Smith in the fourth. In a controversial move, the referee prevented Eubank from following up by allowing Smith to go to his corner to deal with a dropped mouthpiece.

Eubank would resume his dominance, hurting Smith several times as the fight played out and dropping him for a second time in the tenth. Once Smith got back to his feet, Eubank trapped him against the ropes and unleashed a barrage of punches to end the fight.

In the aftermath, Smith offered no excuses and gave high praise to Eubank.

"I was flat from the start; the weight killed me after the injury. I was just flat from the get-go and Chris was sharp, that's all I can say about it really," Smith said.

"I couldn't move my feet and when I did I rolled my ankle; I have dodgy ankles anyway so it's just one of those things. Chris was the better man tonight, I shout when I win and I'll take my defeat when I lose. Everyone knows how I was with the weight. After the injury I came down three stone, its a lot of weight to come down."