Chris Eubank Jr. has spent the past eight months perfecting his craft in the presence of one of the greatest to ever lace up a pair of gloves.
All that’s left is for the second-generation middleweight is to now make his way to the ring.
That day could draw near for England’s Eubank (29-2, 22KOs), who has spent all of the pandemic hard at work at the Pensacola (Florida) training facility of former four-division champion Roy Jones Jr. Their roles have intertwined at times, as Jones is preparing for an exhibition clash with fellow all-time great Mike Tyson on November 28 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Soon thereafter is expected for his pupil’s time to shine.
“I’m trying to get back in the ring by December,” Eubank told BoxingScene.com. “Nothing is confirmed but hopefully in December. I want to get back before the year is out for sure. COVID has messed everything up.”
The 31-year old from Brighton, England has been out of the ring since his U.S. debut last December. Eubank claimed a 2nd round injury stoppage win over former middleweight title challenger Matvey Korobov at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The bout aired live on Showtime in the chief support to unbeaten middleweight titlist Jermall Charlo (31-0, 22KOs), who stopped Dennis Hogan inside of seven rounds.
It was hardly a secret that the show was designed to set up a head-on collision between Charlo and Eubank, as both fight under the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) banner.
The hope was to have secured the title fight earlier this year, only for the sport to shut down due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Hopes of rescheduling the title fight never came to pass, with Charlo instead facing and defeating divisional trialhorse Sergiy Derevyanchenko (13-3, 10KOs).
Nary a sense of bitterness has come of the development; rather an appreciation for how things have played out in the end. All that’s asked of the boxer now, is for the chance to show off the enhanced version of his skillset to the boxing world.
“The Charlo fight probably would have happened this year. But everything happens for a reason,” Eubank surmises. “I ended up here with Roy. We’ve worked on all the things I feel I needed to work on. I feel like I’m a better fighter for it. Now it’s just on Al Haymon and PBC to get me in there with these guys.”
Ideally, a December fight will come against a respectable opponent in preparation of bigger things to come—including his revisiting old plans.
“The Charlo fight didn’t happen this year, it’s just how it’s meant to be,” notes Eubank, who has won three straight including a decisive 12-round win over countryman and former super middleweight titlist James DeGale this past February. “It’s just how life has chosen things to play out.
“Will it happen next year? I think there’s a very high chance. I don’t see why not.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
