Eubank (22-2, 9 KOs) began aggressively, pressing forward behind his unorthodox style, but Papot (32-1-1, 5 KOs) immediately established control with sharp movement and precise counterpunching. The breakthrough came in the second round when Papot timed Eubank with a crushing straight left that sent him heavily to the canvas. Eubank survived the round, but another left hand had him badly hurt before the bell.
Papot continued to dictate the fight during the early rounds, repeatedly beating Eubank to the punch with his straight left while making the British fighter miss as he rushed forward. A cut developed beneath Eubank’s right eye, and Papot’s confidence continued to grow as he neutralized Eubank’s attacks with timing instead of volume.
The momentum briefly shifted in the middle rounds. Eubank found greater success as Papot’s movement slowed and finally scored a knockdown in the seventh with a left hook after slipping an incoming punch. The home crowd sensed the comeback as Eubank carried that momentum into the following rounds.
Any hopes of a turnaround disappeared in the 10th.
After enjoying another strong spell, Eubank was caught clean by Papot’s trademark left hand and dropped for the second time. Moments later, another left sent him crashing to the canvas again, leaving him badly shaken. Although Eubank showed determination by surviving the round and fighting hard through the championship rounds, the damage had already secured Papot a commanding lead on the scorecards.
Eubank pressed for a stoppage over the final two rounds, knowing he needed something dramatic, but Papot remained composed, continued landing the cleaner punches and finished the fight strongly enough to remove any doubt about the outcome.
The victory gives Papot the biggest win of his professional career after falling short against Liam Paro in an IBF title fight last September. For Eubank, the defeat interrupts his climb toward the upper tier of the welterweight division after entering the contest unbeaten in his previous 22 professional bouts.
