Sunday 22 February 2015 16:11, UK
Martin Murray suffered a courageous defeat as Gennady Golovkin defended his WBA middleweight title with an 11th round stoppage win.
The St Helens man continually climbed off the canvas, despite sustained punishment from the heavy-hitting Kazakh, and was eventually rescued by referee Luis Pabon in Monte Carlo.
But Murray can take pride from his battling effort, enjoying sporadic success with crisp counters, and he extended Golovkin to the 11th round for the first time in his destructive career.
In the opening rounds, the British challenger fought off the back foot, fending off punches with a tight guard as Golovkin marauded forward with early menace.
But this tactic appeared unwise when Murray was floored twice in a disastrous fourth round. After backing his foe onto the ropes, Golovkin dropped him with a crunching body punch. Murray swiftly rose, but was sent down by another spiteful shot to the ribs and somehow survived until the bell.
Showing stubborn defiance, Murray withstood further punishment as the fight continued and was left with a bloodied face after stinging uppercuts in the sixth.
Golovkin was throwing punches at his opponent from all angles, but began to show signs of fatigue and Murray pounced on a slip in the ninth, unleashing a crisp combination.
But this was only a brief spell of success for the Brit, who was sent crashing to the canvas by a huge right in the 10th, and clung on to hear the bell.
There was little respite for Murray and he appeared ready to wilt on the ropes, with Golovkin piling on more punches, when Pabon signalled the finish.
