Billam-Smith's 'pride and body' hurt after defeat

Former cruiserweight boxing world champion Chris Billam-Smith has said his "pride and body are extremely sore" after he was defeated by Gilberto Ramirez in his bid to unify the WBA and WBO titles.

Mexican Ramirez dominated the majority of the fight in Saudi Arabia on Saturday although Billam-Smith admirably fought on, staying on his feet for the full 12 rounds.

In a post on Instagram, the Bournemouth fighter said his opponent was a "fantastic fighter and great man in and outside of the ring".

The former WBO champion added he would be spending time "letting my body recover".

Billam-Smith, 34, broke his right thumb, fractured his left hand and suffered a deep cut above his eye early on in the contest, that ended with a comprehensive points defeat.

Following the fight in Riyadh, he was taken straight to hospital where he stayed for about eight hours.

In his social media post following the bout, Billam-Smith, known as The Gentleman, said: "It was an honour to share the ring with him [Ramirez] in a unification fight."

"I gave it everything I had on the night, both my pride and my body are extremely sore today."

He said he was "hugely disappointed" that he "couldn't get the job done", and thanked his followers for their support.

"We've had quite the journey together these last couple of years. I am now looking forward spending quality time with my family and letting my body recover," he added.

Saturday's victory had been a comfortable one for Ramirez on the cards, the judges at ringside scoring it 116-112, 116-112 and 116-113.

In a separate post on Instagram, Billam-Smith's trainer Shane McGuigan said his fighter "could not have given more to the fight".

"[He is] a clear 'winner in life and [I] cannot reflect back on his career at any stage saying he could have tried harder," he added.

The fight was Billam-Smith's first time fighting outside of the UK as he headlined on "Latino Night" in Saudi Arabia.

He has previously fought in his hometown of Bournemouth four times in a row as well as headlining twice in other Premier League stadiums.

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