Chris Eubank Jr

Chris Eubank Jr
Christopher Livingstone Eubank Jr. (born 18 September 1989) is a British professional boxer. He held the World Boxing Association (WBA) interim middleweight title twice between 2015 and 2021. He also held the International Boxing Organization (IBO) super-middleweight title twice between 2017 and 2019. At regional level, he held the British middleweight title in 2016. He is the son of former two-division world champion of boxing, Chris Eubank.
As of September 2023, he is ranked as the world's best active middleweight by BoxRec, second by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and sixth by The Ring magazine.
Early life
Eubank Jr. was born in Hove, East Sussex, the son of Boxer Chris Eubank and Karron Suzanne Stephen-Martin. He was a pupil at Brighton College, Shoreham College for one year, and Spring Valley High School in Las Vegas for two years. Eubank featured alongside his father in the reality TV series At Home with the Eubanks.
At the age of 16, Eubank Jr. and his brother Sebastian (1991–2021) moved to the United States to live with a guardian named Irene Hutton. It was explained by their mother Karron, as a paper adoption, as a means of gaining the two brothers dual citizenship without the need to marry, and to enhance their prospects of sporting careers.
Amateur career
Eubank Jr. started his amateur career in 2007. With the winning of his sixth amateur fight, he became the Amateur Golden Gloves Champion for the State of Nevada in his weight division of 165 lbs. With his eighth amateur fight he became the Amateur Golden Glove Champion for the Western States of the United States in his weight division. Eubank was 1–1 in the 2008 National Golden Gloves. He ended his amateur career with a record of 24–2.
Professional career
Early career
Eubank Jr. turned professional in 2011 and signed with promoter Mick Hennessy. He was mentored by his father, and trainer Ronnie Davies who also guided his father. Over the next three years, Eubank Jr. amassed a record of 18–0 with 13 knockouts to his name.
Middleweight
On 19 February 2014, Eubank Jr. signed a deal to appear on BoxNation, with his first fight being at the York Hall in London on 22 February.
Eubank vs. Warren
In his first fight with BoxNation Eubank Jr. stopped Alistair Warren, after Warren retired on his stool before round four.
Eubank vs. Micsko
Eubank Jr. next fought at the Copper Box Arena in London on 12 April against Sandor Micsko. Eubank landed a big uppercut in round two, which dropped Micsko. The referee waved the fight off. In the post-fight, Eubank said, "I'm the next generation. I worked on the uppercut in the gym and I connected beautifully tonight. When I connect with these guys I'm taking them out, no one can stand up to my power and I'll only get better and stronger. I'm ready for a title fight now."
Eubank vs. Swierzbinkski
On 10 May 2014, Eubank Jr. defeated Robert Swierzbinkski at the Olympia in Liverpool, Eubank dropped Swierzbinkski (13–2, 3 KOs) seven times, stopping him in round seven.
Eubank vs. Horváth
Eubank Jr. fought Štěpán Horváth, at Newcastle Arena in Newcastle on 7 June 2014. Eubank dropped Horváth four times, stopping him in round six. This was Eubank's eighth straight stoppage win.
Eubank vs. Jukić
On the Saunders vs. Blandamura undercard on 26 July at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, Eubank Jr. stopped journeyman Ivan Jukić (19–2, 12 KOs) after 2 minutes and 40 seconds of the opening round.
Eubank vs. Siala
Eubank Jr. fought German Omar Siala at the Liverpool Arena on 25 October 2014 in an eight-round fight. Eubank Jr. won the fight after a right uppercut knocked out Siala in the second round
Eubank vs. Saunders
On 15 September 2014, Frank Warren announced that Eubank Jr. would challenge unbeaten Billy Joe Saunders for the British, Commonwealth and European titles on the undercard of Derek Chisora vs Tyson Fury II on 9 November at the ExCeL arena. On 25 September 2014 the fight was postponed due to contractual issues. On 3 October the fight was confirmed, but would take place on 29 November instead and would also be a WBO final eliminator.
Eubank Jr. lost his unbeaten record when he lost a split decision to Saunders. The bout went the distance, with the experienced Saunders controlling the first six rounds with his footwork, style and technical boxing ability, as Eubank Jr. was mostly inactive. From round seven onward Eubank Jr. was in control with a much higher punch output, this resulted in the two young boxers brawling and trading hard shots for the rest of the fight. In the twelfth round, Eubank Jr. came out gunning for the knockout but was unable to get it. The early inactivity turned out to be the deciding factor as Saunders was victorious. One judge scored the bout 116–113 to Eubank Jr, while the other two judges scored it 115–114 and 115–113 in favour of Saunders.
Eubank vs Chudinov
On 30 December 2014, Frank Warren announced that Eubank Jr. would fight undefeated WBA interim middleweight champion Dmitry Chudinov (14–0–2, 9 KOs), on 28 February 2015 at The O2 Arena in London on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs Christian Hammer. Eubank scored a twelfth-round TKO win over Chudinov. Eubank Jr. at the time of stoppage, was ahead on all three judges scorecards 106–103, 108–101, 107–102. In round two, an accidental clash of heads caused a cut above Chudinov's left eye. Eubank Jr. spent the rest of the fight landing power shot combinations and breaking Chudinov down. After the win, Eubank Jr. sought a rematch with Saunders, "This result is redemption and I'm back. And I want that rematch, Billy Joe Saunders. I'm coming for you." Ultimately however, despite given multiple chances Eubank refused to sign the fight which would have earned him close to £1million.
Matchroom Sports
After 2015 that was mostly inactive, Eubank Jr. signed to promoter Eddie Hearn under the Matchroom Sport banner. Hearn is the son of Eubank Sr.'s former promoter Barry Hearn. Veteran trainer Adam Booth was added to the team to co-train Eubank.
Eubank vs Jeter
Eubank Jr.'s first fight after signing with Matchroom was a bout against Tony Jeter on 24 October 2017 where he defended his WBA interim middleweight champion. After knocking Jeter down in the first round, Eubank Jr. knocked Jeter down twice in the second round before landing a flurry of combinations, forcing the referee to stop the fight.
Loss of interim WBA middleweight title
Following the bout against Jeter, Eubank Jr. was stripped of the interim WBA middleweight title due to his inactivity defending the title.
Eubank vs O'Sullivan
On 12 December 2015 Eubank Jr. fought Gary O'Sullivan in an eliminator to challenge the de jure WBA middleweight champion, Daniel Jacobs at the O2 Arena in London on the undercard of Anthony Joshua vs Dillian Whyte. The bout was originally scheduled to take place in May 2015
The fight was well anticipated, as the pair had a history of feuds in the past, with O'Sullivan targeting Eubank on social media. The fight throughout had the pace set by Eubank Jr., O'Sullivan showed resilience to Eubank Jr's continuous hard uppercuts. At the end of the seventh round, O'Sullivan's corner retired their fighter, who had sustained a perforated eardrum.
Eubank vs Blackwell
In February 2016, Hennessy Sports announced a fight between Eubank Jr. and Nick Blackwell (19-3-1, 8 KOs) for the British middleweight title would take place on 26 March at the Wembley Arena in London. Eubank Jr. dominated the fight to the point that Eubank Sr. began imploring the referee to stop the fight. Following the eighth round, Eubank Sr. instructed Eubank Jr. to stop hitting Blackwell in the head. The referee called a stop to the fight at 2:21 in the tenth round, and awarded Eubank Jr. the win by TKO. Blackwell was taken to hospital with bleeding on the brain, and was placed in a medically induced coma for treatment, from which he was bought out one week later and retired from competitive boxing. The fight averaged 1.5 million viewers on Channel 5.
Eubank vs Doran
After re-signing with Matchroom Sport, it was announced on Sky Sports on 18 May 2016 that Eubank Jr. would fight on the undercard of Anthony Joshua vs Dominic Breazeale at The O2 on 25 June 2016. Tom Doran was announced as Eubank Jr.'s opponent on 19 May 2016. Prior to the fight Eubank Jr. was ranked number two by the WBA and number three by the WBC. Eubank Jr. won via fourth-round TKO to retain the British Middleweight title. Doran was down once in the third round and three times in the fourth as the referee ended the fight. Eubank Jr. called out Gennady Golovkin in a post-fight interview with Sky Sports.
Cancelled Langford fight
It was announced on 12 August 2016 that Eubank Jr. would make a mandatory defence of his British middleweight title against undefeated Commonwealth and WBO Inter-Continental middleweight champion Tommy Langford after promoter Frank Warren won a purse bid to stage the fight. Eubank, however, relinquished the title in September after suffering an injury in sparring.
Proposed Golvokin fight
Throughout 2016, Eubank Jr. made it clear that he wanted to challenge the undefeated unified middleweight champion Gennady Golvokin. The purse split for Eubank Jr. was reported to be up to £6 million, Eubank Sr. wanted his son to earn a bigger share, due to the 'risk' of fighting a 'big puncher'. In July 2016, Golovkin was confirmed to have signed his end of the contract. On 8 July 2016, Eubank Jr. was removed from the fight by promoter Eddie Hearn who offered the deal to then-IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook, who took the deal to fight Golovkin on 10 September 2016. Eubank Jr. responded to being replaced by stating he "had never been presented with the fight contract." Boxers including Tommy Langford, Martin Murray, Curtis Stevens began calling out Eubank.
Super-middleweight
Eubank vs Quinlan
On 13 December 2016, Eubank Jr. announced via his Facebook page that he would be making his debut in the super middleweight division, fighting Renold Quinlan (11-1, 7 KOs) for his IBO super-middleweight title. Quinlan won the then-vacant IBO title defeating former world champion Daniel Geale in October 2016 via knockout in round two. The date of the fight was confirmed to be 4 February 2017 with the venue being at the Lee Valley VeloPark, Olympic Park, in London.
Despite having not previously fought at super-middleweight, the December 2016 WBC super-middleweight ranking update had Eubank Jr. at number seven, previously being number two at middleweight. On 6 January 2017, Quinlan threatened to walk away from the fight citing that in his opinion "there was little to no promotion, with the fight being only weeks away." he stated the build-up has not been enough to promote the biggest fight of his career, "It’s only a few weeks away and I've got the feeling that it’s going to be delayed. There’s been no media around it and it’s not getting the exposure it should be. I've been training well but I’m not 100 per cent focused now. I have a feeling it's going to get pulled." The fight went ahead as scheduled.
Eubank Jr. stopped Quinlan in round ten in a fairly one-sided fight to win the IBO super-middleweight title. The fight was stopped by referee Howard John Foster, 2 minutes and 7 seconds of round ten after seeing Quinlan backed up against the ropes after being hit with continuous headshots. After a steady start, Eubank started taking control in the fifth round when he started using his speed advantage over Quinlan. After the fight was stopped, Eubank stood on the ropes in the corner in his trademark stance. In the post-fight interview, he gave credit to Quinlan, describing him as a tough fighter, "It was like hitting concrete. Big respect to Renold Quinlan. He flew halfway around the world to defend his title against one of the best in the world. He didn't have to do that." Eubank said that he was "comfortable making 160 and 168 pounds and wanted to fight Golovkin, Saunders or DeGale next".
Eubank vs Abraham
Reports suggested on 1 June 2017 that Eubank would make his ring return in July 2017 defending his IBO super middleweight title against former multiple-weight world champion Arthur Abraham (46-5, 30 KOs) in London. The two potential dates discussed were 15 and 22 July. At the time the fight was being discussed, Abraham was the mandatory challenger to the WBO super middleweight title, held by Gilberto Ramirez, who defeated Abraham in April 2015. On 5 June, it was confirmed that the fight would take place at the Wembley Arena in London on 15 July 2017. The official press announcement was scheduled to take place on 7 June. At the weigh in, Abraham weighed 12st 1lb 5oz, which was 1lb 13oz over the limit. He was given two hours to lose the extra weight. Eubank Jr. weighed inside the limit at 11st 13lb 3oz. It was said that if Abraham couldn't make weight a second time, the fight would still take place in a non-title fight. Abraham made weight at the third attempt.
Eubank Jr. won via a unanimous decision with the scorecards 120–108, 120–108 and 118–110. Eubank out-landed and outpointed Abraham. The previous time Eubank Jr. went the twelve-round distance was his split decision loss to Saunders in November 2014, and the previous time he won a fight on points was on his eighth professional fight in December 2012. Eubank Jr. landed heavy uppercuts throughout the fight, many single and some in combinations, with Abraham only managing to connect a few shots clean.
Eubank Jr. spoke of Abraham's performance, "He's definitely the most durable opponent I've faced. I hit him with every shot in the book. He didn't win a round and I'm happy with the performance." With the win, Eubank Jr. advanced into the World Boxing Super Series.
World Boxing Super Series
On 7 July 2017, Comosa AG, a joint venture between Sauerland Promotions and Richard Schaefer, announced the winner of Abraham and Eubank would be taking part in a super-middleweight knockout tournament called the 'World Boxing Super Series'.
Eubank vs Yıldırım
In Monte Carlo on 8 July 2017 Chris Eubank Sr., Eubank Jr. picked undefeated Avni Yıldırım (16–0, 10 KOs) to face his son, as part of the tournament draft. The fight was confirmed following Eubank Jr.'s win over Abraham. Promoter Kalle Sauerland said official confirmation of a venue and date would be announced in the coming weeks. On 8 August 2017 it was announced that the fight would take place on 7 October at the Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle in Stuttgart, Germany, marking it the second time Eubank would be fighting outside the UK since turning professional.
Eubank Jr. used his hand speed and power shots to stop Yıldırım in round three of their fight to confirm his place in the semi-finals of the tournament. Yıldırım was forced to take a knee in the opening round when Eubank landed an uppercut. The fight came to an end after a flurry of shots, which were unanswered and the final punch was a left hook to the head which again dropped Yıldırım. Referee Leszek Jankowiak stopped the fight without counting, whilst Yıldırım attempted to get up. At ringside after the fight, Eubank Jr. stated, "I am here to dominate this tournament. I am sending a message out there that I am coming." Eubank Jr. landed 59 of 201 punches thrown (29%), whilst Yıldırım landed 23 of 91 thrown (25%). Before the fight, a brawl broke out in the crowd.
Eubank vs Groves
Due to winning their respective bouts in October 2017, Eubank Jr. and George Groves (27–3, 20 KOs) were due to meet in the semi-final of the tournament. At first, promoter Kalle Sauerland stated he would try to book the fight for a stadium in either London or Manchester. In November 2017, ITV News reported the fight was set to take place on 17 February 2018 at the Manchester Arena in Manchester. The winner of the fight would earn his place in the final of the tournament and the WBA (Super) and IBO super-middleweight titles. Tickets for the fight sold out in seven minutes. Groves weighed 167 pounds, a full pound under the weight limit and Eubank came in at 167.5 pounds.
Groves secured his place in the final of the tournament after defeating Eubank Jr. over twelve rounds. The judges scored the fight 117–112, 116–112 and 115–113 for Groves. Groves, the bigger man in the ring, used his jab to control the fight after a cagey round and mostly fought on the back foot, occasionally landing the big shot. An accidental clash of heads caused Eubank Jr. to receive a cut on the side of his right eye in round three. The cut was dealt with by his corner after the round, but as the fight went on to the later rounds, blood was seen flowing from the wound. The fight had a high number of clinches and unclean punches from both boxers. Groves retained his WBA title but did not claim Eubank Jr.'s IBO title as he did not pay their sanctioning fees. Groves also suffered a dislocated shoulder in round twelve. It was said that Groves weighed around 184 pounds on fight night.
After the fight, Groves said, "It was about who wanted it most, I think, and I obviously wanted it most. The jab was landing correctly all night. When he had success, it was because I did something wrong. He was strong, he was aggressive, but that obviously wasn’t enough tonight." Eubank replied, "I thought it was close. I thought I did enough in the later rounds to win the fight, but it was a close fight. And all credit to George. You know, this is all part of boxing. You win some and you lose some. Hopefully we can get a rematch. It was enough of a good fight to have another one." Punch stats showed that Groves landed 117 of 398 punches thrown (29%) and Eubank landed 92 of his 421 thrown (22%). Many pundits and former boxers stated Eubank should move forward and hire a trainer. Both boxers earned a base purse of £1.5 million, which could increase due to sponsorship and PPV sales. Four days after the fight it was revealed that Groves did not fight for the IBO belt after failing to agree on sanctioning fees with the IBO's president Ed Levine.
On 9 May, Kalle Sauerland explained that Groves could potentially be replaced by Eubank Jr. in the final of the tournament against Smith, however there would be confirmation on the final in the next ten days. Sauerland stated, "We're working at the moment on all the solutions and scenarios, where George [Groves] is fit and where he isn't. We’re hopeful [Groves will be fit], so we’ll see. You can’t start the tournament and then have the final lingering into the next tournament. I’m sorry, that’s not going to happen. We can push a month, but we can’t push it back by three or four months. We have a substitute system. We said that from day one, and that’s the situation. We want Groves in the final, but if that’s not possible and he doesn't declare himself fit in the next 10 days, we have to find a solution."
On 17 September, Sauerland announced that Eubank Jr. would fight JJ McDonagh on the George Groves vs Callum Smith undercard on 28 September at The Indoor Sports Hall at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Eubank Jr. won the fight via corner retirement. McDonagh chose to stay on his stool after round three, complaining of a shoulder injury. The crowd booed the stoppage. McDonagh was knocked down in the opening round from a left hand to the head. In round three, Eubank Jr. began to land a lot of shots on McDonagh. McDonagh was willing to stand and trade with Eubank. The high work rate from Eubank Jr. eventually backed McDonagh off. Eubank stated he "was not convinced McDonagh injured his shoulder and only took the fight on short notice for a payday." A fight nearly broke out when McDonagh heard Eubank Jr.'s comments.
Eubank vs DeGale
On 3 January 2019, an official press conference took place to announce that James DeGale vs. Chris Eubank Jr. would take place on 23 February 2019 at The O2 Arena in London. The rivalry between DeGale (25-2-1, 15 KOs) and Eubank began a few years earlier, after a series of run-ins, from sparring with one another in the gym to trading verbal insults across social media. Serious talks around the fight first began in July 2018 after DeGale vacated his IBF super-middleweight title. The fight was originally intended to take place in December 2018, but contract for the fight was not agreed. The possibility of the fight was first announced in November 2018.
Eubank said he had been training in Las Vegas at the Mayweather Boxing Club alongside former boxer Nate Vasquez. Eubank said, "Instead of me going through the motions and trying to beat guys using heart and determination. Now we have strategy involved. This is going to take me to the next level." International Boxing Organization president Ed Levine confirmed their super-middleweight title would be at stake.
On 23 February, Chris Eubank Jr. defeated James DeGale by a unanimous decision. The scorecards read 114–112, 115–112 and 117–109 for Eubank Jr. DeGale suffered knocked downs in round two and round ten after Eubank Jr. landed a series of blows.
Return to middleweight
Eubank vs Korobov
On 7 December 2019, Eubank Jr., ranked #1 by the WBA faced former title contender Matt Korobov, ranked #3 by the WBA for the vacant WBA interim middleweight title. Korobov got off to a strong start. However, 20 seconds into the second round, Korobov injured his left shoulder. Shortly after, Korobov couldn't continue, and the referee awarded Eubank Jr with a second-round TKO win.
Eubank vs Morrison
Eubank Jr. returned on 1 May 2021 after 17 months, to face Marcus Morrison at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England, under the stewardship of former four-division world champion Roy Jones Jr. as his new trainer. Eubank Jr. was victorious via unanimous decision, with all three judges' scorecards reading 98–92 in his favour. Post-fight, Eubank Jr. reflected on the bout which had gone the full ten-round distance: "I had him [Morrison] hurt bad in the second round and probably could have ended the fight. But I wanted rounds. I wanted to use some of the stuff that Roy Jones has taught me. Experience the instructions he was giving me. If I see an opening, I usually take it. But I'm here to learn with a new coach. You can't get better by knocking a guy out in the second round. I decided to keep him in there. He's a tough kid."
Eubank vs Awdijan
On 16 October 2021, Eubank Jr. faced Wanik Awdijan at the Newcastle Arena. His shorts and ring-walk robe were adorned by the name of Sebastian, his brother who had died in July 2021. Eubank Jr. won the bout via fifth-round corner retirement.
Eubank vs Williams
In the biggest indoor arena boxing show in Cardiff, Wales in over 20 years, Eubank Jr. faced his Welsh rival, former world title contender Liam Williams, at the Cardiff International Arena on 5 February 2022. Williams' home advantage ultimately did not pay off, as Eubank Jr. produced a dominant display to emerge as the winner via wide unanimous decision, with judges' scorecards of 116–109, 116–108 and 117–109. In the first round, Eubank Jr. sent his opponent to the canvas when he knocked Williams down with a jab. He scored another knockdown in the second round, this time knocking the Welshman down with a left hook. Williams was down yet again in the fourth round as a result of a slick Eubank Jr. combination. Although Williams improved in the middle rounds, Eubank Jr. scored a fourth knockdown in the eleventh round, before showboating in the twelfth and final round to cement what had been a dominant performance.
Speaking in his post-fight interview, Eubank Jr. stated his 'happiness' with his victory 'in spite of Williams' dirty tactics' and 'pre-fight trash talk': "I am happy with the performance, I wanted to teach that man a lesson, he said some quite menacing things to me in the lead-up to this fight. I wanted to punish him. I didn't want to knock him out in one round, I wanted to punish him. Headbutts, headlocks, I am surprised he didn't get disqualified. But I took it like a man and I punished him like I said I would. It was a fun night."
Cancelled bout with Conor Benn
In 2022, Eubank Jr. announced he would face Conor Benn at a catchweight of 157lbs. This fight has been marketed as a grudge match of sorts, considering the fathers of both boxers, Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn, maintained a fierce rivalry throughout the early-mid '90s, culminating in two fights: a TKO victory for Eubank during their first meeting in 1990, and a draw three years later in their second fight.
The fight was scheduled to take place on 8 October 2022 at London's O2 Arena. Eubank Jr. later admitted in an interview that he was struggling to reach the required 157lbs weight limit, which proved to be cause for worry with his father, who threatened to pull him out of the fight. Eubank Jr. has also stated that if he did lose the fight, he would retire.
On 5 October 2022, a statement was released from the British Boxing Board of Control declaring the fight was prohibited from taking place on after Benn tested positive for clomifene. Benn's promoters, Matchroom Sport, released a statement saying, "Benn has not been charged with any rule violation, he is not suspended, and he remains free to fight." Despite Eubanks' promoter also saying the fight will go ahead as scheduled, it was officially postponed.
Eubank vs Smith
Eubank Jr. fought former WBO light-middleweight champion Liam Smith at the Manchester Arena in England on 21 January 2023. Eubank was beaten after the referee waved off the fight in the fourth round.
Eubank vs Smith II
A rematch between Eubank Jr. and Smith was originally scheduled for 17 June 2023 and rescheduled to 1 July at the Manchester Arena in England. The bout was then rescheduled for a second time to 2 September, due to an injury to Smith. Eubank won the bout after the referee stepped in to wave off the fight in the 10th round.
Professional boxing record
Pay-per-view bouts
References
External links
Chris Eubank Jr - Profile, News Archive & Current Rankings at Box.Live
1989 births
Living people
Black British sportsmen
British Boxing Board of Control champions
English male boxers
Sportspeople from Hove
English people of Jamaican descent
People educated at Brighton College
People educated at Shoreham College
Middleweight boxers
Super-middleweight boxers
International Boxing Organization champions