By Ben Dirs BBC Sport at Goresbrook Leisure Centre, Dagenham

Eastman remains on course for a world title shot

Howard Eastman outpointed Russia's Sergey Tatevosyan at the Goresbrook Leisure Centre on Friday to retain his European middleweight title.

Eastman improved his record to 39 wins and one loss but was far from convincing in front of a subdued Dagenham crowd.

However, the 'Battersea Bomber' remains on course for a WBC title eliminator against Italian fighter Cristian Sanavia in April.

It was clear from the opening bell that Tatevosyan had come to fight and he responded to the Eastman jab with some useful flurries of his own in the early rounds.

Relying on sharp head movement and quick feet to escape Eastman's clutches, the slippery southpaw frustrated the champion throughout and it was only midway through the contest that the champion began to assert his authority.

Eastman targets title tilt

Landing consistently with his left hook, Eastman drew Tatevosyan's sting down the home straight but never looked like stopping the challenger who continued with his hit and run tactics until the final bell.

The judges scored the fight 117-112, 120-109, 116-113 but the margin of victory flattered a lacklustre Eastman who was defending his EBU title for a third time.

"He was very slippery - in fact his name ought to be the 'Vaseline Kid'," said Eastman afterwards.

I was happy with my performance tonight but I will be better next time Howard Eastman

"He did very well and obviously came to survive. I have only had three weeks' preparation for this fight after the birth of my baby girl.

"But there are no excuses. Overall I was happy with my performance tonight but I will be better next time."

Despite Eastman's assurances, his performance would have done his prospects of a match with WBC champion Bernard Hopkins no favours.

On the undercard, rising British super-middleweight star Carl Froch beat Dmitry Adamovich, of Belarus, with a confident second-round stoppage.

Crunch fight for Froch

Froch warmed up for his British title challenge with an emphatic win over Adamovich, who went four rounds with former WBC champ Robin Reid.

"I completely wiped the floor with him," said the Nottingham fighter.

"He hardly laid a glove on me but the next contest is the big one for me."