GREENOCK boxer John Simpson suffered an 11th career defeat at the weekend on the undercard of Ricky Burns’ world title showdown after his gamble of fighting at lightweight backfired.

Simpson was stopped in his scheduled 10-round contest by former British and European champion John Murray, of Manchester, at the Scottish Exhibition Centre in Glasgow.

It was always going to be a tough ask for the gutsy 30-year-old, given that Murray is two weight divisions higher.

Simpson was thwarted two seconds from the end of the second round after being put down three times by big body shots.

He bravely climbed off the canvas each time to beat the count, but referee Victor Loughlin pulled the plug on the contest, in the belief that Simpson was in no fit state to continue.

Simpson appeared initially to complain that 29-year-old Murray had hit him below the belt the first time he went down and kicked the ropes in frustration at the decision when the Paisley official waved the bout over.

But he later conceded: “On reflection, I don’t think it was a low blow.

“He caught me three times on the body.

“It’s disappointing as I felt I was ahead after the first round. But I knew I was fighting a natural lightweight and a bigger guy, and because of his size I couldn’t keep him off me. I also took the fight at only three or four weeks’ notice so I wasn’t as fit as I would want to be although I’ll make sure I am for my next fight.

“I plan to drop back down to featherweight, which is my natural weight, and progress from there.” He added: “It was a brilliant atmosphere with 10,000 fans and I want to thank my supporters from Greenock.” Murray said: “I respect John because he’s a real tough man and a brave guy.

“I have always been a big fan of his.” Even though his appearance was brief, Simpson showed enough touches and good movement to confirm he is far from a spent force at championship level.

The former Commonwealth and two-time British featherweight champion also confirmed that he is eyeing a European title shot before he retires.

He said: “That is my goal over the next year. I don’t have long left in the game and that is why I want to give it one final hard push to make featherweight again.

“Maybe I will have to win the British and Commonwealth titles again to get a shot.

“I will have to wait and see, but I would say I have two years maximum left.

“I always said I would like to retire when I was 30. But I am sparring and performing well, so I really don’t want to end it here.” Meanwhile, promoter Eddie Hearn insists he will turn Burns into a three-time world champion by the end of the year.

The London promoter pledged to stand by his man in defeat by American Terence Crawford after pointing out: “This was Ricky’s 10th world title fight and he deserves huge respect.

“There are a lot of good fights out there, the WBA champion, the IBF champion, and I am sure we can bring them to Glasgow.

“Ricky’s got the hunger to be a champion again and I am sure a lot of the sanctioning bodies would love to have him.” Hearn is considering the possibility of trying to make a match with WBA champion Richar Abril, of Cuba, or Mexican Miguel Vazquez, the IBF title-holder who Burns was supposed to meet last year in a unification bout.

There is also the possibility of a warm-up against Simpson’s conqueror, Murray after Hearn pointed out: “The only reason to go for a domestic fight is if they carry a carrot for a world title bout, like a final eliminator, so that could be an option.”