On Saturday, Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn will go head to head at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, in one of the biggest British boxing matches of this generation.
And their unique rivalry is an extension of one of the greatest grudges in the history of British fighting: Chris Eubank Sr vs Nigel Benn.
In November 1990, Eubank Sr and Nigel Benn clashed at Resorts World Arena in Birmingham, with Eubank Sr stopping his rival in the ninth round.
At the time, the fight was in the balance, with Benn ahead by one round on two scorecards, and Sr leading by one round in the eyes of the final judge. Those scores were rendered irrelevant, however, as Eubank Sr sealed the stoppage to take the WBO middleweight belt from Benn.
Then, in October 1993, the Britons shared the ring again, this time at Old Trafford in Manchester. Eubank Sr put the WBO title on the line, while Benn held the WBC belt by that point.
In the rematch, the pair went the full 12 rounds, but their grudge was not settled; at least Benn was unable to secure revenge, as the bout ended in a split draw.
One judge scored the contest in favour of Benn (114-113), one preferred Eubank Sr’s work (115-113), and the other had it a draw (114-114).
While the Britons were bitter rivals at the time, they have gone some way to putting water under the bridge – a relief, given Benn is now 61 and Eubank Sr is 58.
Still, although Eubank Sr and Nigel Benn have largely let bygones be bygones, their sons are locked in their own feud.
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When Eubank Sr and Conor Benn were paired in late 2022, they were due to box at the O2 Arena almost 29 years to the day after Eubank Sr vs Nigel 2.
But the fight fell apart upon the revelation that Conor had returned two adverse drug-test results, leading him to be banned from boxing in Britain. The unbeaten welterweight has since been cleared, however, allowing his fight with Eubank Jr to be rescheduled.
And so it will take place on Saturday (26 April) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, as Benn, 28, moves up to middleweight to face Eubank Jr, 35. Nigel will be in his son’s corner, while a tearful Eubank Sr last week branded this bout “a disgrace”, hitting out at Jr in the process.
In any case, the contest will headline a card stacked with British fighters, as Benn aims to gain revenge after Eubank Jr slapped him in the face with an egg in February. That incident, at a pre-fight press conference, stemmed from the WBC’s suggestion in 2023 that Benn’s adverse test results might have come from elevated consumption of eggs. And the slap led Nigel Benn to grab Eubank Jr by the neck, in a heated moment.
Eubank Jr vs Benn will stream live on DAZN pay-per-view in more than 200 countries worldwide. The PPV is priced at £19.95 in the UK, $24.99 in the US, and €24.99 in Europe. The event will also air live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK at a cost of £19.95. Viewers do not need a subscription to either platform to purchase the PPV, but buying the DAZN PPV grants you seven days of free access to the entire platform. You can purchase a subscription to DAZN here, with plans starting at £14.99 a month.
