By Brian Webber: Billy Joe Saunders says he is interested in negotiating a rematch with Chris Eubank Jr if he successfully defeats Conor Benn on Oct. 8.
Former two-division world champion Saunders (30-1, 14 KOs) has been licking his wounds after sustaining multiple fractures to his left orbital bone in the eighth round of his fight against Canelo Alvarez in May 2021.
Saunders, 33, made a lot of money from the Canelo fight and is now in a hurry to get back in the ring. Like many boxers who become millionaires overnight, Saunders has been enjoying himself, eating well and has been slow to return to the salt mines.
Eubank Jr (32-2, 23 KOs) is expected to shake off inexperienced welterweight Conor Benn on Oct. 8, so there’s a chance we could see a Eubank Jr-Saunders rematch.
Eight years ago, Saunders outpointed Eubank Jr by a 12-round split decision. Most boxing fans would agree, Eubank Jr had taken over the fight in the championship rounds against a totally exhausted Saunders.
Since their fight, Eubank Jr. has looked like a much better fighter than Saunders, but he hasn’t been guided carefully and has two titles to win on paper against weak opposition.
Saunders is a textbook example of how smart promoters can guide an average fighter to world titles by pitting them against soft opposition. Billy Joe picked up the two world titles from him against Andy Lee and Shefat Isufi. This is the same Andy Lee that Julio Cesar Chavez Jr and Brian Vera beat.
It’s a little late in the game for a rematch between Saunders and Eubank Jr. While that fight would have been decent in 2015, it’s 2022 now, and newer boxing fans have no idea who these two aging fighters are.
“A lot of people are favoring Eubank because of his size. The smart thing the Benns have done is put the weight restriction on it,” Billy Joe Saunders told Matchroom Boxing.
“Listen, I think this year is definitely marketable for me. I’m in the gym now, enjoying it, going twice a day, enjoying it with the guys. I seem to be enjoying it. I have lost weight and am getting in shape every day. I’m not going to rush anything. When I’m ready, I’m ready.
“It could be the end of the year or the beginning of the next, and we will know soon enough. It all depends on the opponents that are available.
“It all depends on how he is going to handle that at 33 years old. The contract weight is 157 pounds, and he’s only allowed to gain so many pounds before a certain time comes. Many boxers may not be able to rehydrate to where they need to be.
“When he says he’s at 60%, he’s probably saying it to cover his back, to be honest, because maybe it’s worrying him a little bit. I’m going to present it as a completely 50-50 fight.
“First, if you give Conor Benn another year of experience and then you give him the advantage of the weight stage, I would pick Conor Benn. With the experience that Eubank Jr. has, he’s been in some big fights, but with Conor Benn, you can’t count him out.
“I have a feeling he’s going to get something out of the bag. I talked to him, and I’ve been talking to him for a while. He looks so serene. He wants it so much, and there is something at stake that no one will understand. Just them, and I think Conor wants it more.
“The [Conor] She has the best man around to explain that kind of thing to her than I do, and that’s her father. [Nigel Benn]. He’s in the gym, and he’s running all these long runs at half past five and four.
“He is doing this for his family name. Whereas Eubank is only doing it because it’s good money and it’s attention. He is enjoying the attention.
“Don’t forget, there’s business there, and someone’s coming, and they’re going to come hard. If I had a hundred pounds and had to wear it, I would definitely be on Conor Benn.
“I stand by that statement as long as my name is Billy Joe Saunders,” Billy Joe said when asked if he still believes Eubank Jr will never capture a world title. He will never be a world champion as long as he has a hole in his butt because there is one thing he cannot do, and that is box,” Eubank Jr. said.
