Chris Eubank Snr very nearly stole the show back in April when he arrived at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium alongside his son, Chris Eubank Jnr, ahead of that fierce April battle with Conor Benn. That he’ll be there this weekend, when Junior and Benn engage in a rematch – again set for Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – is only presumed.
Junior and Senior have reunited after a long period in which they only rarely communicated. This week, the BBC will broadcast The Eubanks: Like Father, Like Son, a documentary that reveals the intricacies of their relationship and their reunion. It was filmed in September.
Senior has since voiced his displeasure at his son’s desire to fight on at the age of 36.
Yesterday, The Times published an interview with the 59-year-old in which he relays similar fears to those he had back in April, when he urged the British Boxing Board of Control to step in and cancel the fight. Though he was eventually persuaded to be present on the night, Senior has long been opposed to the rivalry with the son of his most revered enemy, Nigel Benn.
Though Junior defeated Conor on points following a savage 12-round battle he would spend two nights in hospital due to severe dehydration. The weight clause, which demanded that Junior weigh no more than 10 pounds over the 160lbs middleweight limit on the morning of the fight, is the same for Saturday’s sequel.
“When he got to the hospital they were able to give him morphine and stabilise him but Junior was touch and go because of the dehydration,” Senior told The Times.
“The promoter is openly trying to damage my son and the public watched this and still no one says anything. They are silent. It’s sad that people are blind to it and now my son is in the same position again.”
Eubank Jnr is set to earn a reported £10m from the rematch, the same fee he commanded in April.
“He has the hearts of a nation through that performance,” Senior went on. “There is nothing harder to win and all he has got to do now is stay still.
“He already has everything, and now you’re going to get back in the ring and put that on the line?”
Eubank Snr, who held WBO belts and middle and super middleweight, retired from boxing in July 1997 after three successive losses saw his record slip to 45-5-2 (23 KOs). At the time of his last fight he had just turned 31 years old.
