Chris Eubank Jr. has no intention of hanging up the gloves anytime soon.
The veteran British middleweight contender, who just turned 33, is approaching a period in which many boxers may experience a natural decline in their ability and start thinking about pursuing a less arduous career path. Not so with Eubank. The Brighton native is headed toward a 12-round middleweight bout with Liam Smith on Jan. 21 at AO Arena in Manchester.
In fact, Eubank envisions himself fighting on the world class level for another five years or so.
“Yes, I’m 33, and I’m not 34 until September next year, and I’ve got a whole lot left in the tank,” Eubank told Sky Sports. “I see myself fighting at the highest levels for another three, four, five years, minimum.
"My father, he retired at 32, which is crazy to think, because I remember being 32 last year and how much energy I had then and how much energy I have now. It’s just retirement is so far out of my thought process.”
Eubank’s fight announcement with Smith comes after the fallout of his 157-pound catchweight bout with Conor Benn that was scheduled for October. But three days out from the fight, Benn was revealed to have tested positive for a banned substance, clomifene, a fertility drug that can boost testosterone levels when used by men. The revelation, after much brouhaha, led to the fight’s eventual cancellation. Benn subsequently was discovered to have tested positive for the same banned substance in the summer. Benn has given up his license with the British Board of Boxing Control and is currently being investigated by UK Anti-Doping and the WBC.
Eubank (32-2, 23 KOs) recently said that Benn (21-0, 14 KOs) never told him about the second positive test. Nevertheless, Eubank has made it clear he still wants to fight Benn sometime in the future. Even if Benn ends up receiving a years-long ban from fighting in the UK, Eubank will likely still be around upon his return.
“I’ve lived the life,” Eubank said. “I’m clean, I don’t drink, I don’t do drugs, I party here and there, but in general I live a great and healthy lifestyle. I’m responsible and I don’t blow up in weight, which means I’m gonna be able to go on and fight, I think, until I’m at least 38, 39, maybe even 40.”