Chris Eubank Jr is expecting an uncomplicated affair when he fights Conor Benn at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday night.
The build-up to the fight has been far from amicable. Eubank Jr made headlines after slapping Benn with an egg at a February press conference, which he claimed was a reference to Benn’s failed drug test in 2022, which had forced the initial fight’s postponement. Nearly three years later, though, the intergenerational grudge match is finally set to go ahead.
The pair’s fathers met in an era-defining bout in 1990, with Chris Eubank Sr winning in nine rounds. Eubank Jr quoted his father’s famous line after the duo faced off at a distance on Tuesday, saying he expected to handle the fight on his own terms.
He said: “The procedure will be parliamentary. Everything will go the way I want it to go. I will be like a matador in the ring, and Conor Benn will be the bull.
“I’m a complete fighter. I’ve been doing this for so long now, I’ve forgotten more things than he even knows, and that will show on the night.
“This fight isn’t about size or weight, it’s about skill and dedication, it’s about expertise and all of those areas I excel in. I have many years of experience over Conor Benn and that will be the deciding factor on the night.”
There is truth to Eubank Jr’s statements. Seven years Benn’s senior, he has taken part in 37 fights to Benn’s 23. He is also three inches taller and fighting in his native weight class, while Benn will need to step up two divisions from welterweight to middleweight.
Benn remains undefeated, though, and is ready to carry his own father’s mantle.
“It's always personal,” he said. “It's personal with every one of my opponents, but this one has more history, shall we say.”
As Eubank Jr spoke in metaphors, Benn is taking a simpler approach to the meeting.
He continued: "I prepare hard, there aren't any tactics to hide. I'm going to come in there and give it to him, that's it. You all know what you're getting”
The pair will hold open workouts in Canary Wharf on Wednesday evening ahead of a final pre-fight press conference on Thursday and Friday’s weigh-in.
