Ryan to wait for world shot

Rhodes: seventh-round win

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Ryan Rhodes claims he is will be looking to defend his newly-acquired European crown before turning his sights to a world title shot.

The 32-year-old from Sheffield caused a shock on Friday night as he stopped champion Jamie Moore in the seventh round to claim the European light-middleweight belt in a fight that also doubled as a WBC title eliminator in Bolton.

Nearly 12 years on from an unsuccessful bid for the WBO middleweight belt, when he was outpointed by Otis Grant, Rhodes now finds himself back in the hunt for a world title once again.

A final eliminator with the WBC's number one contender Julio Cesar Chavez Jr has been talked about, but Rhodes plans to make the most of his status in Europe for a while first.

"Let's see what we can do," when asked about the possibility of a fight with Chavez Jr.

"I'd like to make a couple of defences as European champion and put some money in the bank!

"I'm 32 years old now and I don't want to be carrying on like this, which to be fair was probably the hardest fight of my 14-year career.

"I've not done badly though, have I?"

Despite making the stronger start of the two, Moore began to look tired as the fight progressed with Rhodes increasingly able to pick cleaner shots.

By a dramatic seventh round Moore was blowing while the Yorkshireman still seemed to have plenty in the tank as he brought the fight to a thrilling climax.

Clinical

When the end came it was clinical, Rhodes landing a superb right to floor his opponent emphatically.

The champion rose bravely to beat the count and rallied with a series of heavy-handed blows, but Rhodes sensed his chance and backed his man up before firing in an array of unanswered shots that forced referee Howard Foster to step in.

Moore was generous in defeat, but acknowledged that his constant battle to make the weight over the last couple of years may finally have taken its toll

"No excuses, no sour grapes, the better man won," he said.

"It crippled me making the light-middleweight limit and it has done for two years. I should have moved up two years ago but the Michele Piccirillo fight for the European title was made for March, which I've been waiting for for three years. I thought 'what do I do?'. So I said 'no, I'm staying at light-middleweight'.

"It's my own fault."