Chris Eubank Jr. finally stepped into the ring with rival Conor Benn, and he left no doubt who was the superior fighter on this night.
The British boxing stars stepped into the ring at a sold-out Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday and thrilled the crowd with an intense back-and-forth battle that went to the scorecards after 12 rounds. Eubank Jr. emerged with the unanimous decision win as all three judges scored the contest 116-112 in his favor.
The larger Eubank set the tone early with a jab that kept the speedy Benn on the outside, though Benn was occasionally able to find openings for sneaky power punches. Eubank appeared to be up on the scorecards through the first six rounds, setting the stage for a thrilling sprint to the finish.
Both fighters pushed their gas tanks to the limit as they traded punches in the second half of the contest, with Eubank eventually pulling away as he bullied Benn against the ropes and unleashed flurry after flurry in close. A cut over Eubank’s right eye did little to slow his aggression and by Rounds 11 and 12, he clearly pulled ahead as he battered a fading Benn.
By the end, both fighters were visibly exhausted, having left it all in the ring.
“I knew I was capable of that,” Eubank Jr. said post-fight. “I just needed someone to bring that out of me. And I’m not going to lie, I didn’t expect that he’d be the guy to do that, but the fact that our fathers did what they did all those years ago, it brings out a different soul, a different spirit into you, and that’s what we both showed here tonight.”
Saturday’s matchup was preceded by plenty of drama, both from a historical perspective and recent bad blood. Eubank’s father Chris Eubank Sr. and Benn’s father Nigel Benn had a memorable rivalry, with Eubank Sr. defeating Nigel in a brutal championship bout in 1990 and their second bout in 1993 going to a split draw.
Eubank Jr. and Conor were first scheduled to fight in October 2024, but the bout was postponed when Benn tested positive for the banned substance clomiphene. The following January, a new date was announced and tensions remained high between the English stars. During one faceoff, Eubank slapped Benn with an egg (a reference to Benn claiming his positive test was due to eating too many eggs), resulting in a $129,000 fine for Eubank.
On Friday, Eubank failed to make the contracted weight for the fight and had to pay a $500,000 fine. He successfully re-weighed in this morning to keep the bout on track.
“I pushed through,” Eubank said. “There’s a lot of things going on in my life that I’m not going to get into right now. I’m happy to have [my father] back with me and we’ve upheld the family name like we said we were going to do and onwards and upwards.”
