By Charles Brun: Liam Smith has suffered a training injury, so his June 17th rematch with Chris Eubank Jr must be postponed. It’s unknown what the nature of the injury is for the soon-to-be 35-year-old Smith.
The good news is that the delay will only be a “couple of weeks,” according to Mike Coppinger. The Smith vs. Eubank Jr rematch should have soon if the injury isn’t healing slowly.
Boxing fans have mixed feelings about their interest in seeing a second fight between the 34-year-old ‘Beefy’ Smith (33-3-1, 20 KOs) and the career-long underachieving Eubank Jr (32-3, 23 KOs).
If Smith KOs Eubank Jr again, which he probably will, it would be a good time for him to retire. It’s unlikely Eubank Jr will because he can continue making money fighting at home in the UK, where fans won’t give up on him.
Look at journeyman Derek Chisora is a classic example of a marginal fighter who has carved out a good living despite frequent defeats. He’s a millionaire with thirteen losses.
The difference between Eubank Jr and Chisora is that at least Derek tried mixing it with a small handful of world class fighters during his career. We’ve yet to see Eubank Jr take on a talented fighter at 160 or 168.
Smith already proved conclusively that he’s the superior fighter to the 33-year-old Eubank Jr with his fourth round knockout last January in Manchester.
Why does there need to be a rematch between them there than for money-grab purposes? Smith destroyed the shell of Eubank Jr, knocking him down twice in round four and making it look easy.
Smith should aim higher after that win by going after the world champions at 160, be it against Jermall Charlo, Erislandy Lara, or Janibek Alimkhanuly.
Also, there’s the vacant IBF belt that Smith could be fighting for. Instead of grasping for the loot, Smith should be more ambitious, targeting the champions. If he wants money, a more compelling fight would be against Gennadiy Golovkin.
Fans would be more interested in seeing Liam test his power against GGG than recycling a fight with Eubank Jr, who clearly isn’t a world class fighter.
Eubank Jr was never a good fighter to begin with, and whatever potential he had, it went down the drain with his choice to fight exclusively domestic-level opposition during his twelve-year pro career.
Liam Smith suffered an injury while training and his June 17 rematch with Chris Eubank Jr. has been postponed, sources tell ESPN. The middleweight fight is expected to only be delayed a couple of weeks. Smith scored an upset TKO-4 victory when they met in January.
— Mike Coppinger (@MikeCoppinger) May 8, 2023
