Paddy Donovan was disqualified at the end of the eighth round in his fight with Lewis Crocker on Saturday night

SATURDAY night finished in a mess and it’s a mess is going to take a bit of cleaning up. A cloud of mixed emotion hung over the SSE Arena. Disappointment, relief, frustration, anger, sadness, pride… Relief for the Lewis Crocker camp because their man somehow got out of there with a victory despite getting a boxing lesson from Paddy Donovan.

Lewis Crocker has shared a photo showing the injuries he suffered in his fight with Paddy Donovan. The Belfast man is now the mandatory challenger for the IBF world welterweight title after Donovan was disqualified from their Belfast showdown for hitting Crocker after the bell had sounded in the eighth round.

Paddy Donovan was in control against Lewis Crocker but, after being dedicated two points for headbutts, the rising star was disqualified for hitting his Irish rival after the bell.

Billy Nelson admitted winning in such a manner was "a very unsatisfactory way to win" despite Paddy Donovan owning most of the fight, but argued that 'The Real Deal' brought about his own misfortune

Andy Lee said referee Marcus McDonnell's 'performance' was up there with the worst he's ever seen after watching Paddy Donovan get disqualified against Lewis Crocker. The Limerick southpaw, who was docked two points for leading with his head in the fight,

Lewis Crocker (20-0, 11 KOs) and Paddy Donovan (14-0, 11 KOs) will soon clash in a welterweight fight. Their 12-round bout headlines a Matchroom Boxing card at the SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

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