A NASTY eye injury saw Mark Heffron come up short in his British middleweight title bid against Denzel Bentley.

The pair’s rematch after their September draw was eagerly-anticipated but lasted just four rounds behind closed doors at the BT Sport studio in Stratford.

Having thought he won the first meeting, Oldham favourite Heffron was solid enough in the opener but was caught by a shot from Bentley in round two that damaged his left eye.

The swelling increased across the next six minutes of action in rounds three and four as Bentley sensed a big chance.

Before round five could start Heffron’s corner deemed him unable to continue with the eye all but closed, Bentley being declared the new Lonsdale belt holder at 160lb.

It’s a bitter blow for Heffron who was determined to realise his British title dream having also come up short against Liam Williams in December 2018.

Manager Kevin Maree wrote on Facebook: "Mark's ok . We are taking him to hospital to get him checked out.

"Just one of those freak injuries. The worst I’ve seen in boxing in terms of how quick it closed. It totally closed and we couldn’t let him back out

"We are disappointed but injuries happen.

"Congratulations to Denzel and his team. They are all total gentlemen and we wish them all the best."