In the aftermath of his son’s cancelled bout with Conor Benn, Chris Eubank Sr told talkSPORT that the organisers were committing ‘attempted murder’.
British boxing’s most iconic rivalry looked set to deliver the final chapter last week. But disaster stuck, when ‘The Destroyer’ failed a drug test. Subseqeuntly, despite a desperate push from promoters Eddie Hearn and Kalle Sauerland to keep the fight alive, they eventually conceded and pulled the plug.
The cancellation of the fight delighted Eubank Sr, who had adamantly protested against it taking place. The former world champion had vocally criticised the weight in which his son would have to deplete himself to.
Throughout his career, Eubank Jr has contested at middleweight (160lbs) and super-middleweight (168lbs). However, for his bout with Benn, he agreed to crash down to 157 pounds, which left his Dad scared for his health. And now the 56-year-old has opened up in an emotionally driven interview.
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Chris Eubank Sr hits out at everyone involved in Eubank Jr vs Benn
During a chat with Jim White, the boxing legend gave his unfiltered opinion.
He began: “Anyone who attempts to murder my son, I have my view of them, of what I’m going to share with the world.”
When the level of accusation was pointed out, Eubank Sr quickly responded: “What do you mean strong? That’s not strong, that’s very polite for anyone who would attempt to murder my boy. Why is it strong?
“You don’t know – if you’re 33 years old, you can’t do what you used to do in your mid-20s, which is to lose weight and to be able to handle the loss of that weight.”
He continued: “To take a man down 3lbs beneath the middleweight limit (160lbs), to have him boil down to 157lbs is literally attempted murder.
“And they wanted me to be an accomplice to it. They were asking me to take money to come onto DAZN and be a part of it.
“They asked me to be in my son’s corner, they were trying to pay me to be in my son’s corner, they wanted me to be an accomplice to my son’s murder.
“Now, if you think that’s strong, you need to talk to Michael Watson, you need to talk to Gerald McClellan – if he can make sense.
“You need to speak to Nick Blackwell, you need to speak to Mike Tyson, you need to speak to Lennox Lewis, then you’ll understand the magnitude of this outrage.”
Sadly, Eubank Sr understands the risks of setting foot in the ring better than most. His bout with Michael Watson ended in tragedy when his opponent sustained a life-altering brain injury. A similar situation occurred when Benn collided with Gerald McClellan. In addition, Nick Blackwell collapsed due to a bleed on his skull after fighting Eubank Jr.
Chris Eubank Sr answers whether he was relieved that the bout didn’t go ahea
Last year, the ex-boxer suffered another tragedy when his son Sebastian passed away at just 29-years-of-age. Thus he’s making sure that no harm come to his other sons.
When pushed on whether he was relieved about the cancellation, he replied:” Relieved is an insult. You have no idea what it means to lose a son.
“It’s an insult to say to me, ‘Oh, you were relieved.’ Relieved? Relieved? Look, he’s my son, I’ve loved him all his life, 33 years.
“I’ve done everything I can to actually bolster him into a position of strength to where no-one would cheat him and misuse him.
“If someone tried to murder your son, you would sound like me. And if you wouldn’t sound like me, then you aren’t a man.
“I’m here to tell everybody that we’re men. We’re not boys, we’re not idiots, we’re not fools, we’re not toddlers.
“We’re men and we have to protect our sons.”
When asked about his son agreeing to the 157lbs catchweight, Eubank Sr admitted: “Yes, he won’t listen to me, he wouldn’t listen to me.
“And so I had to go behind the scenes in silence and help them make the right decision.
“And the right decision was made the day before the fight was to take place.”
Featured Image Credit: Getty