The pair will finally settle the score later this month in London – and one key individual has detailed exactly how Benn can topple his long-time rival
Chris Eubank Jr‘s former coach and boxing legend Roy Jones Jr has given Conor Benn tips on how to beat his ex-pupil.
The British boxing stars will meet in a blockbuster middleweight dust-up on April 26 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, more than 30 years after their fathers fought. Eubank Jr and Benn locked horns verbally during dual press conferences in February, following the confirmation of their clash.
Eubank Jr sparked chaos at the first press conference in Manchester after slapping his upcoming rival in the face with an egg. The pair have continued to trade barbs following their heated altercations in Manchester and London. With a little over a week to go until the dust-up, both men are in the final preparations of their respective training camps.
After the clash was finally announced, many stars within the combat sports community have weighed in and offered their verdict as to how the fight will play out. Boxing icon Jones Jr was chomping at the bit to give his thoughts on the fight. The American famously teamed up with Eubank Jr during lockdown and they became a team between 2020-2023.
READ MORE: Ben Whittaker explains why being baptised will help him in Liam Cameron rematchREAD MORE: Daniel Dubois vs Oleksandr Usyk rematch date set for undisputed showdown
Jones Jr, a former four-weight world champion, has given Benn his tips on how to beat Eubank Jr ahead of the upcoming fight. “Chris learned in the Liam Smith fight that you can’t underestimate nobody,” he said. “Liam Smith was not known as a knockout puncher and he got a win over Chris. That woke him up and prepared him for this fight. He takes his lesson and applies it to this fight, he’ll be fine.
“Conor, on the other hand, has to take a page out of his dad’s book. The only way he’s gonna beat Eubank is if he’s flat on his back. I’m not gonna outbox him, he’s bigger than me. I can’t move around and stay away from him cause he’s the bigger guy. ’I can’t let the bigger guy stop me. I have to stop him, because my family’s known for punching power. I’ve got to be true to the sport, my goal is to land a big left hook, or overhand right. He has to know that. Chris’ job is to just go out there and be Chris, but Conor has to try to gamble and make something happen.”
Eubank Jr and Benn were due to fight back in 2022, but the fight was cancelled after the latter failed a drugs test. That said, Benn has now been cleared to compete again in the UK and will be looking to secure a life-changing win on his move up to 160lbs. However, Eubank Jr is confident he will get the job done later this month.
“The fight will be one of a kind. It has never happened in boxing,” he said. No two fighters have had fathers who were world champions and fought in massive fights 30-odd years ago with the entire country watching.
“Fighting me, a sworn enemy in a fight broadcast around the world that could be at Wembley in front of 90,000 people or in an arena in Saudi is a whole different animal. It will bring out a beast in him that I cannot take lightly. I think it is going to be savage, one of the best fights British boxing, world boxing has seen for quite some time because it’s real. This isn’t pretend.”
