Two-and-a-half years after they were initially slated to meet and more than three decades on from their fathers redefining the superfight landscape in Britain, Chris Eubank Jr. outlasted Conor Benn to claim a thrilling unanimous decision win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday night.
Eubank was given a deserved 116-112 verdict on all three scorecards, but those bare facts only tell a fraction of the story. A fight put together in contrived and controversial circumstances, and drenched in fan-service nostalgia, eventually delivered a barnburning classic on its own terms.
The immediate pre-fight attention was stolen by Chris Eubank, Junior's presumed-to-be-estranged father, arriving at the stadium with his son. It was a genuinely touching moment beneath the WWE-style bombast and father and son shared the ringwalk, with the older man's signature Simply The Best giving way to the current fighting Eubank's Still D.R.E.
Benn had cut a snarling, imposing figure on his way to the ring, a 28-year-old with a point to prove after his failed drug tests sent the planned October 8, 2022 fight up in flames. Eubank Sr. entering the ring to embrace Nigel Benn and then Conor felt like something that might throw him off his game.
RECAP: Watch Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn on DAZN
Yet after the fighters had to be persuaded insistently by referee Victor Loughlin to touch gloves, Benn tore into the task with breath-taking ferocity. It left him ragged and exposed as Eubank took the opening round but the second and third fell his way, the older man looking lumpen on his feet and seemingly feeling the effects of a brutal weight cut.
Eubank returned to his lead left hand to reassert control, measuring Benn with jabs and lead hooks. By the middle rounds, it was starting to become a thankless task for the 'Destroyer'.
Round eight is the one that the 67,400 in attendance will speak of for years to come. Benn rampaged out of his corner like a man possessed, desperate to turn the tide. The 35-year-old Eubank did not have the reserves to retrea,t so met the younger man in an unrelenting firefight. There was more of the same in round nine and Benn sensed a brave foe might be wilting.
However, in an echo of his father at his peak —to be clear, neither Chris Jr. or Conor can measure up to their parents in terms of pure boxing prowess — Eubank located an extra gas tank and landed at will on Benn in the championship rounds. For his part, Benn waded into harm's way over and over, and looked in danger of being stopped during the final minute.
Victory went to Eubank and with some justification. The Compubox numbers showed he outlanded Benn in every single round. The night belonged to the pair of them, and two remarkable fighting families who still somehow hold a sizeable portion of the British public under their spell after all this time.
Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn full card results
- Chris Eubank Jr. def. Conor Benn (UD 12); Middleweights
- Aaron McKenna def. Liam Smith (UD 12); Middleweights
- Anthony Yarde def. Lyndon Arthur (UD 12); Light Heavyweights
- Viddal Riley def. Cheavon Clarke (c) (UD 12) to win the BBBofC Cruiserweight title
- Chris Billam-Smith def. Brandon Glanton (UD 10); Cruiserweights
Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn tune-in info
- Date: Saturday, April 26
- Time: 5 p.m. BST
- Main event start time (approx.): 10 p.m. BST
- Location: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - Tottenham, England
- Live Stream: DAZN
Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn will be available on DAZN worldwide.
In the UK. A DAZN monthly subscription costs £9.99 on a 12-month contract or £19.99 month-to-month. An annual subscription will cost £99.99. The PPV price for the event will be £19.95. A 7-day no-commitment free trial is still part of the PPV buy. The fight is also available to purchase on Sky Sports Box Office for the same price.
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