Middleweight contender Chris Eubank Jr. is at the crossroads of his career after suffering an unexpected knockout loss at the hands of big underdog Liam Smith on Saturday night in Manchester.

In a fight where Eubank appeared to have taken control by the end of the third round, Smith opened up with an arsenal of big shots in the fourth to drop Eubank hard. Eubank barely made it up, before getting decked for a second time and the fight was waved off.

Smith, a former junior middleweight champion, was moving up in weight to take the fight.

Eubank seems to be leaning in the direction of exercising his immediate rematch clause.

He strongly feels that he was easily winning the fight before Smith clipped him on the chin with a good shot.

"A tough night? No I wouldn't even say that, I was having fun, I was landing my shots, I was enjoying the moment," Eubank exclusively told Sky Sports from his dressing room post-fight. "And he caught me with a once-in-a-lifetime shot. I got up, I recovered, he put it on me again with a few more shots and the referee decided it was enough. I felt like I could go on. I felt like I was aware of what was happening, but it was the referee's decision and I have to respect it.

"I felt like I was dominating the fight before that happened, so I think we've got an exciting opportunity, at some point in the future, to have that rematch. Listen, it's boxing, it's a sexy sport, this is the sport we love. Anything can happen. I never would have believed this could happen.

"I think a lot of people didn't see this happening, and it happened, but that's okay. I'm okay with it. It's part of the journey and I've still got a lot left so we'll see what happens later on in the year. He had good hand speed, but it was that one sequence of shots. He threw a bunch of shots and one of them landed and it dazed me. I felt before that I was in control of the fight.

"That third round I was picking my shots, and, no disrespect, but every dog has its day. This was Liam's night, and I respect him. There's losing a fight and losing a fight. I was dominating the fight and then I got caught, so to me I'm still able to perform and in my mind I'm still the better fighter. Obviously I don't have much of an argument after a loss, but I have an argument to prove I'm the better fighter. It was a shot that landed, and it's a fight I think the fans will still want to see further down the line."