According to a long-time cornerman, former WBO welterweight champion Jeff Horn was completely spent after two rounds of action in last week's big showdown with unbeaten Tim Tszyu.

Horn was dropped twice, took a beating, and was stopped after eight rounds in the all-Australian junior welterweight clash in Townsville.

Stephen Edwards, who worked with Horn for seven years, has made statements that raise serious questions regarding the fighter's conditioning for the bout.

Horn was dropped in the third round and suffered a second knockdown in the sixth. He was never in the fight and took a lot of punishment as the contest played out.

While the 25-year-old Tszyu is now being viewed as a future superstar in the sport, Horn - at only 32-years-old - is facing retirement calls from fans and friends.

"By the end of the second round I thought Jeff was gassed," Edwards told The Sunday Telegraph. "He got by on pure heart from that point.

"From round five onwards there were some robust discussions in our corner about where the fight was heading."

Horn's trainer Glenn Rushton has taken a lot of criticism for debating the stoppage of the contest after eight rounds. Rushton was giving Horn the opportunity to continue, while others in the corner were asking for the contest to get stopped.

"Jeff had taken a lot of punishment," Edwards said. "His legs were gone, his power was gone, his speed was gone and he had no petrol left. We were way behind on the scorecards.

"Because I care so much about Jeff I couldn't allow him to go back out. Jeff's a warrior and if he'd had something left he'd have told us to let him go on."