Fabio Wardley took a moment to assure his mother, Shonni-leigh, at ringside that he was OK following his devastating loss to Daniel Dubois. Referee Howard Foster stopped the fight just 28 seconds into the 11th round, with the champion no longer able to defend himself.

Wardley (31) was still on his feet at the time and somehow Dubois was not knocked down throughout the grueling fight. Nevertheless, his right eye became completely swollen, severely impairing his vision, and the bridge of his nose bled profusely, making it tough to breathe.

After the break, Wardley collapsed to the canvas – although that was due to sheer exhaustion and the relief of the punishment finally being over. Once on his feet, the dethroned champion went to his mother, Shonni-leigh, at ringside and leaned over the ropes, repeatedly telling her everything was fine before retreating to his corner. Doctors from the British Boxing Board of Control examined his injuries three times during the fight, but each time they allowed the fight to continue.

The consensus is that Wardley conceded the last few rounds after a promising start. He knocked down Dubois twice in the first three rounds, gaining a decisive advantage after two rounds 10-8.

However, these were probably the only rounds in which Wardley won as his opponent later took decisive control and at the time of the stoppage the champion appeared to lose his advantage on the scorecards. This situation caused many viewers to call for an end to the fight for several rounds before referee Foster finally stepped in.

One fan told the BBC it was a “disgrace”, claiming he had “never felt so uncomfortable watching a boxing match” and concluded it was “horrible”. Another added: “We’re used to entertainment but this was brutal.”

Yet another accused Foster of “terrible refereeing,” saying the fight “should have been stopped earlier.” Someone else agreed, saying: “It was stopped a little too behind schedule and it was getting ugly.”

However, his mother never hesitated to participate in his fights. Wardley told DAZN last October: “She’s always been my biggest fan.”

“It’s amusing, when you talk about boxing or combat sports in general about your mom, it can be very brutal. She was the one who never hid behind her hands, or didn’t look, or didn’t look at what was going on. She was always noisy in front of the crowd, jumping to her feet, cheering, screaming, just trying to get into the ring herself if she could. In that sense, she was my biggest supporter.”

Promoter Frank Warren has confirmed that there is a rematch clause in the contract after one of the fiercest fights in recent British boxing history between Daniel Dubois and Fabio Wardley. Dubois rose from the turf twice to stop Wardley, who had a blistering start, defeating Dubois after just 10 seconds and again in the third round.

However, in between these knockdowns, Dubois established his jab and asserted his dominance. From the fourth round he took control, even though many of his hardest punches initially missed Wardley’s chin. By the ninth, Wardley’s right eye was almost closed as he endured merciless punishment, and Dubois finally ended the proceedings in the 11th to regain the world title.

Wardley defended his inherited heavyweight belt for the first time when Oleksandr Usyk relinquished the title rather than face the Ipswich-born fighter. Meanwhile, Dubois was fighting for the first time since his second loss to Usyk last summer and was fighting for the belt for the second time.

For some viewers it was a tough viewing, many felt it could have been stopped earlier; for others, the fight has already been hailed as one of the best heavyweight fights in history. Warren then confirmed that there is a robust possibility that Dubois and Wardley will meet in the ring again.

“These two guys showed their hearts and their chins,” he told DAZN. “It was an amazing fight with everything in it. There is a rematch clause in the contract.

“Let’s let the heavyweight dust settle and then we’ll see [about what comes next]. He is [Dubois] he’s back and Fabio isn’t leaving either. He’s a real brave man.”

Speaking later, Dubois said: “It was a war. Thank you Fabio for this. I know I have heart. I’m a fighter out there. I had to get it out of the bag, what a great fight and battle.”

“He’s a tough guy, he’s a great fighter. It was an honor to be in the ring with him.”