JOHN DUDDY insisted that a world title fight next year was out of his hands, but it’s looming after his thrilling victory over the former European, British and Commonwealth middleweight champion, Howard Eastman, before a frenzied full house at The Kings Hall in Belfast on Saturday night.

AFTER the fiasco of the aborted McCullough-Martinez fight a week earlier there were no problems at the scales in Belfast yesterday when John Duddy and Howard Eastman weighed in for tonight’s sell-out middleweight contest at The King’s Hall (RTÉ2, 9pm).

Howard Eastman won the British middleweight title by knocking out Richard Williams in the final round of their bout in Bethnal Green.

Promoter Mick Hennessy is in no doubt Howard Eastman has all the hallmarks of a world champion.