After having engaged in their heavily hyped fight that delivered and then some, what next for (still?) bitter British rivals Chris Eubank Junior and Conor Benn? Both men will of course need a heck of a long rest after going through the 12 thrilling, gruelling, sometimes frenetic sessions they went through last night, while Eubank will have to let his cut right eye heal up, and we hear, his broken jaw.

After all the hype, after all the trash-talk, after all the waiting, the “Next Gen” fight proved to be well worth seeing. There were other surprises: Benn’s chin, one that was able to take Eubank’s best middleweight punches. And Eubank, who appeared so drained at the pre-fight weigh-in, showed amazing stamina. Both men showed real fighting heart, and though Benn will be devastated at losing to a man he swore he would never lose to, he can for sure come again.

Benn said post-fight that it will either be a rematch with Eubank next (the rematch clause having been in place), or a drop back down to welterweight and a shot at WBC champ Mario Barrios. Benn is capable of winning either fight.

That’s yesterday’s loser. As for the winner, Eubank said post-fight that it will be “onwards and upwards” for him from here on in. But at age 35, after having gone through such a grit-his-teeth, dig deep war, how much might Eubank be left with? Can Eubank win a legit world title, and if so, at what weight? Super-middleweight seems to be the sensible direction Eubank should take, but with talk already suggesting the rematch with Benn will happen – that it has to happen – might Eubank again have to boil down to 160 pounds?

As for a shot at Mexican star Canelo Alvarez, as was spoken about as a real possibility should Eubank get past Benn, maybe, in light of how much of a thrill Eubank gave us, this along with his dance partner Benn, fans would buy a Canelo Vs. Eubank fight at 168 pounds.

For now, both Eubank and Benn can soak up the plaudits their fight/war/slugfest FOTY candidate is rightfully getting. In the end, this fight, labelled a “curiosity” or a “circus” fight by the critics, who claimed the fight was only as big as it was because of the surnames of the two men, shocked all of us. It was a legit fight, you could even say a domestic classic, and it was ferociously entertaining.

“The best non-title fight I’ve ever witnessed,” said former champ turned pundit Tony Bellew last night.