By Edward Chaykovsky, photo by Ed Mulholland.
IBO super middleweight champion Chris Eubank Jr. is expecting to fight WBC, WBA, IBO, IBF middleweight king Gennady Golovkin in 2017.
This past Saturday night in London, Eubank captured the IBO belt with a stoppage win over Australian Renold Quinlan (11-2, 7 KOs).
Eubank (24-1, 19 KOs), 27, was in talks to face Golovkin (36-0, 33 KOs) last September at the O2 Arena in London. After being unable to reach an agreement with his own promoter at he time, Eddie Hearn, the fight fell apart. Hearn pulled out Eubank Jr. and replaced him with IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook.
Golovkin is scheduled to make a mandatory defense against Daniel Jacobs (32-1, 29 KOs) on March 18 at New York's Madison Square Garden. The dangerous puncher wants to fight at least three to four times this year.
Eubank Jr. is very confident of the fight coming off at some point in the second half of the year.
"One hundred percent [it will happen], that's the fight I want because that's what the public want to see," Eubank told Nick Parkinson. "I've been calling for it for the last two years. I've every bit of confidence that fight with Golovkin will happen in 2017.
Golovkin claims Eubank Jr. forgot his pen last year. Eubank Jr. has a different take on the situation and blames everything on Hearn, claiming there were deceptive motives to push him away from the fight.
"It's not that I didn't go through with it last year, I want the fight, but [promoter] Eddie Hearn gave the fight away to Kell Brook.Everything was being finalised and he [Hearn] saw an easier option. We're not yes men, we don't say yes to every clause. All the funny business that gets put into contracts, but we want a fair shake," Eubank said.
"We were close to making the fight but out of nowhere Kell Brook said he would take the fight, even though he was not a middleweight and was never going to win it, and Eddie Hearn saw an opportunity. But if anything it's given me more time to prepare for Gennady Golovkin."
