Eddie Hearn believes Leigh Wood's coach, Ben Davison, was right to throw in the towel after the former WBA world featherweight champion was brutally knocked down by Mauricio Lara on Saturday night.
During the closing stages of the seventh round, Wood found himself on the wrong end of a trademark Lara left hook which saw the Nottingham man fall onto the ring canvas.
Despite meeting the referee's count and showing a willingness to continue, Davison threw in the towel to stop the fight and save his fighter for another day. This decision has split opinion amongst British boxing fans and Hearn was asked to give his verdict after being ringside at the Motorpoint Arena.
"I’m thinking throw the towel in, but I was surprised the referee let it continue because he [Leigh Wood] was out of the game," Hearn told The DAZN Boxing Show.
"But he’s also a world champion and you’ve got to be given every opportunity to continue.
"When Ben threw the towel in, I heard the 10 second banging on the table, and then I thought ‘Oh no!’. But then you think about how long 10 seconds is."
While Wood did respond to the referee's instructions after being knocked down, Lara was ready to inflict even more damage which could have resulted in major consequences for the rest of Wood's career.
"He [Mauricio Lara] was three feet away from Leigh Wood and ready to pounce on him, there was no way he wouldn’t have landed a clean shot on Leigh Wood in those eight or nine seconds because Leigh wasn’t in a position to hold or defend himself," Hearn continued.
"The reality is it would have only taken a clean jab to put him over and a clean shot from Mauricio Lara means Leigh Wood may not have left that ring on his feet and his career might be over."