Middleweight contender Chris Eubank Jr. believes that he will batter upcoming opponent, former world champion Liam Smith, when they collide on January 21 at the AO Arena in Manchester.
Eubank was scheduled to fight Conor Benn in a high-profile showdown back in October. Their bout was scrapped after Benn tested positive for a banned substance.
Smith is not overly impressed with the abilities of Eubank.
The Liverpool fighter has collided with opponent like Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez and previously explained that Eubank is several steps below the very best of his division.
Eubank is not paying any attention to the pre-fight banter.
"I don't make anything of what my opponents say because I've heard it all," Eubank said.
I've heard all this talk a million times: 'I'm going to knock you out.' 'You can't box.' 'You can't jab.' 'You're not skilled enough.' All these guys say all the same things leading up to these big fights and then when it actually comes down to the crunch time, when that bell goes, all the words flutter away and they just end up getting dominated by the better fighter in me.
"I've seen it time and time again and it's going to be no different on January 21 against Liam Smith. On January 21, Sky Sports Box Office, Liam Smith is going to get a serious lesson. I'm going to be sparring eight rounds today, and sparring another eight rounds another two times over the next week and every week until the fight comes. So everything's on track.
"I don't think it's going to be too much of a challenge for me so I don't think I need to spar any more than eight rounds. That's probably how long the fight is going to last. Guys that are a little bit more dangerous than Liam I'd probably be sparring 12 rounds but I think eight's more than enough for Liam Smith. I'm not being disrespectful, I'm just very confident."
