Smith vs Eggington results: Liam Smith batters Sam Eggington, stops him in five

Liam Smith did about as expected today in his hometown of Liverpool, outclassing the always-game Sam Eggington and stopping Eggington in the fifth round when the referee stepped in.

Smith (27-2-1, 15 KO) picked Eggington (24-6, 15 KO) apart from the first round on, marking him up and doing obvious damage. Eggington was in the fight offensively, landing some shots and all that, but Smith broke through his defense with ease constantly, and never gave Eggington a chance to build any momentum.

The official time of stoppage came at 2:00 of the fifth round, with Eggington still fighting back but just taking too many shots for the referee’s liking.

It was the fight anticipated as soon as the matchup was made, as Smith has done very well in his career, only losing to Canelo Alvarez and Jaime Munguia, while Eggington has had setbacks at much lower levels.

“I hit him too often, too cleanly. He’s a tough, tough man,” Smith said after the fight, summing it up plainly.

As for what’s next for the 30-year-old Smith, his trainer Joe Gallagher and promoter Eddie Hearn both have some ideas.

Since Smith won the vacant WBC “silver” title with this victory, Gallagher said he’d like to see Liam facing European champion Sergio Garcia in a final WBC eliminator. Hearn said he “loved” the Garcia idea, and also mentioned Smith possibly facing Matchroom veterans Kell Brook and Jessie Vargas, both former titleholders at 147 pounds.