Chris Eubank Sr is vowing to pull his son Chris Jr out of a 157-pound catchweight bout with Conor Benn planned for Oct. 8, citing concerns his son could make weight without great risk in the ring.
To be clear up front, everyone else says the fight is on, but Eubank Sr is threatening legal action.
“If you are not going to listen to me, then you will have to listen to my King’s Council. That fight doesn’t happen. If he doesn’t take the advice then I have to put my foot down. … This is a modern ‘gladiator’, not a game for the public. We have to be strict, otherwise lives are in danger and my son’s life cannot be in danger.”
Another of Eubank’s sons, Sebastian, died aged 29 last year, which is understandably a big part of his concern, having another child in what he feels is simply too risky a situation.
Benn (21-0, 14 KOs), the 25-year-old son of Sr’s old rival Nigel Benn, is a welterweight by trade, while Eubank Jr (32-2, 23 KOs) has spent his career at heavyweight. medium and super medium. . He has never weighed less than 158¼ pounds on the scales, and that was in 2014 when he fought Omar Siala.
The fight has been met with some criticism, mainly because it’s such an obvious cash grab for DAZN and Matchroom, pitting an undefeated welterweight who ran out of easy opponents against a veteran middleweight who, frankly, hasn’t shown a strong desire to take on other current top middleweights.
Eubank, 32, has also come under fire from longtime rival Billy Joe Saunders for this, but Chris Jr himself has made no statement about wanting not to go ahead with the fight and, again, the organizers keep saying it will happen. . .
For now, Eubank vs. Benn still stands, whether Chris Sr. likes it or not, and he clearly doesn’t.
