Brighton's Chris Eubank Jr has pulled out of his British middleweight title defence against Tommy Langford in Cardiff on October 22 and relinquished the belt.

A statement from Team Eubank revealed Eubank Jr suffered a severe elbow injury in sparring on Friday against a 14-stone opponent.

Eubank Jr was due to make the second defence of the belt in Cardiff next month.

The statement also claims Eubank Jr will now be moving away from British level opponents and the injury was "perhaps a blessing in disguise" as it would not be in the best interests of prospective opponents to fight him.

Eubank Jr won the British title in a brutal stoppage against Nick Blackwell, who was subsequently placed in an induced coma after the fight.

The statement said: "It is now with relief, as it has become clear to Chris Eubank Jr’s management over these past few months how much danger the health and lives of these contenders are in, therefore the relinquishing of the British Championship due to injury sustained in a sparring session is perhaps a blessing in disguise.

"The severe injury to Chris Jr’s elbow follows an ongoing injury which has been a recurring issue for the last 18 months. This allows Chris Eubank Jr, and his management, the opportunity to relinquish the title which provides all contenders the right to earn a living and fight amongst their equal calibre of competitors.

"As much as we love the tradition of the British Championship we will be forward thinking and be protective of our competition as the risk to them is real. This is seen as a positive move forward in Chris Eubank Jr’s career."