By Mark Eisner: Chris Eubank Jr. has his eyes on facing the winner of the trilogy match between Gennadiy Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez in 2021. The former IBO super-middleweight champion Eubank Jr. (29-2, 22 KOs), would ideally like to face either of those two fighters in 2020 if possible, but he has a real-life view of his situation.
He’s not expecting either of those two superstar champions to face him this year. What Eubank Jr. plans on doing it getting back into the ring to get a tune-up match under his belt after the lockdown in a fight behind closed doors most likely, and he wants a good opponent.
Eubank Jr. says he doesn’t want to fight a “bum” when he returns to the ring, as he’s only fought two rounds in the last 17 months. The 30-year-old Eubank Jr’s last opponent Matt Korobov suffered a left shoulder injury in round two of their fight in December of last year, and he was unable to continue.
Eubank Jr. would like to challenge for a world title against WBC middleweight champion Jermall Charlo if he can’t fight against Canelo or Golovkin.
Eubank Jr. talks about losing GGG fight
“I read a story about a week ago that I’d never heard before. I haven’t had a conversation with my old man [Chris Eubank Sr] yet,” said Eubank Jr. to IFL TV. “People have been giving me s*** for years about the Golovkin fall through.
“Now Eddie [Hearn] has come out and said ‘the reason why the fight fell through is that my old man at the last minute said, ‘The contract’s perfect but just to seal the deal, Eddie, you’ve got to get me this painting that’s on some Matchroom’s office wall, and you’ve got to give me that painting, then the fight happens.’
“Apparently, Eddie went to his old man [Barry Hearn] and asked him to take the picture down, and his old man said, ‘F*** you,’ and the fights gone [with Golovkin]. I’ve always been very upset that fight didn’t happen, but what’s even more upsetting is people actually believe that I was responsible like I didn’t want the fight.
“Eddie now has admitted it. I was ready to go, and apparently, this crazy thing happened. It was an ego thing between my old man and Barry Hearn, and that’s what stopped the fight. I just don’t see any reason why Eddie would make something like that up now,” said Eubank Jr.
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn said last week that Chris Eubank Sr. was the reason the Gennady Golovkin fight fell apart for Eubank Jr. during negotiations in 2016. They had agreed to terms, but Eubank Sr. supposedly wanted a picture of himself off Barry’s wall in his office.
Hearn loves ‘Yes-men’ – Eubank Jr.
“It doesn’t make sense, so there had to be some kind of agreement,” continued Eubank Jr. on the Golovkin negotiations. “The main point is, it wasn’t me. Eddie said his story, but from what I understand, and what I think is more likely, is the fight was made, the purses were made, and I was ready to go, but we are not yes men.
“Eddie loves to deal with yes men, guys that say, ‘Yes sir, no-sir, whatever you want, sign on the dotted line.’ That’s never been me. In the process of the contract being drawn up, there were things that he didn’t like, but he was having to swallow it because it was a huge fight.
“It was going to make a lot of money. I heard that he was on the phone with Kell Brook, and he was kind of venting a little bit. ‘These Eubank’s, they’re so hard to deal with. They want everything their way or whatever.’ It was off the cuff. ‘It would be so much easier if you [Brook] fought. Why don’t you just fight?’
“Not really expecting [Brook to accept]. It was just an off the cuff thing. Kell was like, ‘Alright, I’ll fight him.’ Eddie’s like a light bulb went off. ‘Alright, well great, I can deal with what I want with you, and give you half of what I was going to give Eubank, and get you over here and get you on the Matchroom Sky Sports’ card.’
“That’s what I think happened. It wasn’t me. I was ready to go, and I wanted the fight. My pen was in my bloody hand, and the fight got taken away,” said Eubank Jr.
It sounds like Hearn may not have been all too eager to make the Golovkin vs. Eubank Jr. fight. If Hearn had been serious about wanting the fight, he wouldn’t have offered it to Kell Brook when the negotiations slowed.
Chris Jr. wants Canelo and Golovkin
“Of course, I’m a middleweight, and they have the belts,” said Eubank Jr. when asked if he’s interested in fighting Canelo Alvarez and Golovkin. “I’m an interim champion at the moment. I should be a full champion.
“The fact that Korobov [fight] should have been for the full [WBA middleweight] belt because Canelo shouldn’t be holding multiple belts in different weight classes. That’s not allowed. He shouldn’t have a full title at middleweight.
“He just fought at light heavyweight against [WBO champion Sergey] Kovalev. So I should have been fighting for the real Mccoy. Politics, money, whatever it is, Canelo still has a belt at middleweight. I’m not going to say that’s a bad thing because that enables me to call him out.
“After all, I’m campaigning at middleweight, and he has a belt. Golovkin also has a belt, and those are the two huge names in the sport, and they have belts in my weight divisions. So, of course, I want those fights, and I’m going to be calling their names.
“The fight [with GGG] was taken away three years ago, not through any fault of my own, against Golovkin. That doesn’t mean I stopped wanting to fight him. I’ve been wanting to fight him this whole time, so let’s do it. Who else is going to be a more exciting fight at middleweight? Nobody,” said Eubank Jr.
There’s a good chance that Eubank Jr. will get a fight against one of those two superstars at some point. Canelo and GGG need opponents.
Billy Joe has no chance against Canelo
“Saunders, slim to none is an understatement,” said Eubank Jr. when asked what chance he gives Billy Joe Saunders against Canelo Alvarez if they fight in 2020.
“Me liking him [Saunders] as a person has absolutely nothing to do with it. Did you not watch Billy Joe Saunders’ last fight? If that’s how he performances against that guy [Macelo Coceres], then what’s going to happen when he gets in with Canelo?
“I can’t even remember his name, and that says a lot about his caliber and abilities. If he performs against him like that, what chance is he going to have against one of the pound-for-pounds?
“It’s silly, and it doesn’t make any sense. He doesn’t deserve the fight, and if he gets the fight, he’s going to lose. It’s not going to be as exciting as me against Canelo because if I get in there with Canelo, I’m coming for him.
“I’m going to try and take his head off. Saunders is going to go in there and survive. He’s going to dance around the ring and stink the place out like he’d done so many other times. Nobody wants to see that, and I sure don’t want to see it. I don’t think it should happen. I think it should be a fan-friendly fight,” said Eubank Jr.
More than a few boxing fans see WBO super middleweight champion, Saunders, as having no chance against Canelo.
Eubank Jr. targeting Canelo-Golovkin 3 winner
“If the fight can’t get made with me, then most likely he’ll [Canelo] fight Golovkin again, and I’m going to go and try and get the winner of that or fight [Jermall] Charlo sometime this year,” said Eubank Jr.
“My thought process at the moment is to get a warm-up fight or tune-up fight because I’ve only had one round of fighting in the last year and a few months. I’ve only had one round.
“That’s not a great position to be in going into a world title fight, and that would be the perfect opportunity to get a tune-up fight. I can’t fight a mega-fight without a big crowd.
“Those fights should be done when our situation rectifies, and we’ll have the crowd and will sell tickets. Until then, I’m hoping boxing does what the UFC is doing in having fights without crowds.
“When I say tune-up fight, I’m not saying I’m fighting some bum. I want to fight a guy that can give me some rounds. And I don’t want another Korobov, and I don’t want another one round, and that’s it. I want to get rounds in at middleweight, and then go after these titles,” said Eubank Jr.
The winner of the Canelo vs.Golovkin 3 fight will likely go after WBA middleweight champion Ryota Murata.
