TOP boxing promoter Eddie Hearn believes he’s found a star in Little Lever’s Jack Cullen.

Bolton’s English middleweight champion impressed on his first appearance live on Sky Sports on Friday night, defending his title with an eighth round stoppage of John Harding Jnr in Liverpool.

That caught the eye of Matchroom chief Hearn who had originally brought in Cullen to face his man Felix Cash for the Commonwealth title at the Manchester Arena last month.

But when the Essex fighter pulled out with a hand injury the ‘Little Lever Meat Cleaver’ was handed a chance to impress at the Exhibition Centre on Merseyside and did not disappoint.

The Bolton News:

Now Hearn is likely to pair him with Cash once again, one of British boxing’s most influential figures having been taken aback not just by the 25-year-old’s performance but also by his vocal following.

“We brought him in just as an opponent, but he’s become a star in his own right now,” he said.  

“I’d love to make the Felix Cash fight.

“I don’t know where Little Lever is, but I want to go there. I’m going to buy a house in Little Lever tomorrow and we’re going to go down there!

“Who knows what may happen if these fans keep supporting him? We definitely want him back, for sure.”

Cullen was dominant from the off against Harding Jnr, a protégé of heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte.

The Bolton News:

The challenger hit the canvas in round five before referee Bob Williams stepped in to end proceedings in the eighth with the Brixton fighter taking too much punishment.

It was exactly the kind of breakout performance Cullen needed when in front of a national TV audience for the first time and the Tommy Battel-trained fighter hopes it will be just the start for him with Cash likely to be next. 

“I’m absolutely buzzing,” said Cullen, who has now won 17  of 18 fights as a professional.

“I can box, I can work on the inside, I can do a bit of both.

“I was getting to him and he was starting to slow down. I felt like I was breaking it down from the first round onwards and I did what I had to do.

“I’d love to fight Felix Cash for the Commonwealth title before December.

“It was an absolute pleasure to fight on a Matchroom show. I was gutted the Manchester Arena show got cancelled, but Eddie stuck me on this and I’m really grateful.”