As family FUEDS go none got much BIGGER than this in the 1990’s with Benn Snr and Eubank Snr sharing the ring on 2 MASSIVE fighting occasions with Eubank Snr getting a 9th round STOPPAGE victory in their first outing in 1990 at the NEC in Birmingham and their second epic encounter being scored at DRAW in front of a SELL OUT crown at Old Trafford in Manchester in 1993. Now their sons go to WAR once more on October 8 at London’s o2 and televised LIVE on DAZN around the globe.
The ‘BORN RIVALS’ fight heads up a MASSIVE night of BIG fight action in a co-promotion between Matchroom Boxing & Wasserman Boxing.
Eubank Jr 32-2, 23 KO’s and 32 years old is a former 2 time IBO world super-middleweight champion before returning to middleweight and has campaigned a world level against such opposition as Billy Joe Saunders, Arthur Abraham, James De Gale and George Groves.
Benn Jr 21-0, 14 KO’s 7 years younger has been moving up through the welterweight ranks and has STOPPED 14 of his 21 OPPOS.
The massive CATCH WEIGHT bout is due to take place at 157lbs a WOPPING 10lbs above Benn’s normal 147lb fighting weight and with Eubank Jr normally fighting at 160lb rather than his old 168lb weight he should easily make the 157lb weight.
This is a hard one to pick as firstly you’ve got Eubank Jr a former WORLD CHAMP with experience and less of a weight difference to contend with and on the other hand Benn Jr is YOUNGER and seems unstoppable at 147lb but will he be comfortable and as successful 10lbs heavier than his usual fighting weight?
Ahead of the fight at the PRESSER Eubank Jr told reporters “For him it’s a win-win and for me, if I lose to Conor Benn on October 8, I’m finished. My goal is to fight for a World Title in the next year. I can’t lose to Conor Benn and then expect to fight for a Middleweight World Title, it can’t happen.
“Nothing like this has ever happened before in the history of the sport, two legends went into a ring 30 years ago and inspired a nation. They became superstars and etched their names into not just boxing history, but British history. Now, 30 years later, their son who have both made themselves in the sport of boxing are going to get in the ring.
“The Eubank and Benn name are going to go to war for the third time. Nothing like this has ever happened before and I don’t think it will happen again, ever. That’s why I took this fight. We have to uphold those names to the best of our ability, that’s where it makes it personal for me. I have to make sure the Eubank name stays on top of the Benn name.
“If I’m at 100% then it’s a public execution. I’ll be 60% on the night and that’ll be enough to do whatever I want with you. I don’t hate anybody I would ever give anyone that type of power over me. I don’t even dislike Conor,” he said. “But at the same time this fight is personal. The things his father put my father through, I can’t forget and I can’t forgive.
“I watched the mental toll and the injuries. Him going to hospital and losing half his tongue. I watched Nigel tell my father on national TV that he hated him. These are things I can’t forgive. This is a fight where our family names are on the line and we have to uphold them. That’s where it makes it personal.”
With Benn Jr telling reporters ““I’ve said that numerous times. This is a fight that makes sense for now. The World Title is still the goal, but this is once in a lifetime. This is a fantasy fight for the British public. Forget about how far apart we were when I first turned pro, the names were still mentioned to me. Eubank was still mentioned to me before I even had my debut fight. It’s just been brewing, and the stars have aligned for October 8th.
“As Chris said, we’ve both walked the same road so you’ve got to respect that. I respect all fighters. But when we get in there we will settle the family business. I’m taking care of the family business. The last fight was a draw. It’s about time I set the score straight.
“At the end of the day it’s not my job to worry about what he thinks or what he does, or his team and how he’s approaching this. I worry about what I’ve got to do. I’ve always worried about what I’ve got to do, irrelevant of everyone else and what they’re doing. I’m focusing on delivering on October 8th. I haven’t failed to deliver. I haven’t tasted a loss, and I don’t plan on taking a loss on October 8th.”
Co-promoter and head of Matchroom Eddie Hearn whose father Barry was involved in both of the Benn Snr v Eubank Snr CLASHES told Daily Sport Boxing “I can’t quite believe this is happening but let me tell you, it’s happening!”
Whilst Kalle Sauerland head of Wasserman Boxing said “It has been a long, long, road; not as long as some people think however. The starting gun was fired a little early when people thought the deal was done when we had not actually exchanged contracts yet, but we are dealing with a monster. Not a monster for the Heavyweight World Championship, not a unification, not a grudge match; we’re dealing with a family feud. A feud that started on the November 18, 1990 and one that made me fall back in love with boxing.
Tickets sold out in a matter of hours for this EPIC contest and their FATHER’S previous fights are anything to go by we’re in for an ACTION PACKED fight come October 8.