Tonight’s hotly anticipated boxing bash between Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn will attract a host of global stars from sport and beyond.
Maya Jama, Eddie Howe, Idris Elba, and KSI are just a handful of the names who are set to be in attendance for the showdown at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as revealed by Sky Sports.
The bout has been a long time coming, having first been scheduled for 2022 before it was called off because Benn failed a drugs test, as exclusively revealed by Mail Sport.
And the grudge match, a bitter rivalry which builds on the legacy of their legendary fathers, is the hottest ticket in town for Saturday night in London.
Jama has two seats ringside, with fans eagerly awaiting to see if she will be sat alongside her reported romantic associate, Manchester City star Ruben Dias.
England stars Declan Rice, Noni Madueke, Kieran Trippier, Ben Chilwell, and Ollie Watkins are due to take their place – despite the latter two facing off in the afternoon FA Cup semi-final between Crystal Palace and Aston Villa at Wembley.
Maya Jama is set to attend Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn’s fight, with two seats ringside, amid her purported
Idris Elba (left) and Adolescence star Ashey Walters (right) will also be in attendance
Chris Eubank Jr (left) and Conor Benn meet at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the evening
Ashley Walters, who plays Detective Inspector Luke Bascombe in the hit Netflix series Adolescence, will attend, as will film stars Elba and Michael Ward.
Howe will make the trek down from Newcastle – fresh from relegating Ipswich 3-0 – alongside Trippier to attend as a guest of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, owners of the Magpies, despite his recent pneumonia scare.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has a couple of seats, as does Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy.
WBO Intercontinental heavyweight champion Moses Itauma will be checking in to spy on some fellow punchers, boxing fan Gordon Ramsey (who incidentally has a black belt in karate) will hope to see a storm cooked up, while former Spurs and Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp will take his seat.
From the world of music, Dizzee Rascal, who is often spotted at fights, will feast his eyes on the action.
And there will be room for YouTube and social media influencers, who are increasingly making headway on our television sets, in the form of KSI and Speed.
One man who will not be present is Chris Eubank Sr, who has repeatedly voiced his disapproval of the fight.
The former world champion has raised concerns about his son fighting at the middleweight limit of 160lbs after also agreeing to a rehydration clause that states he cannot weigh more than 170lbs at a second-weigh in on the day of the fight.
England stars Ollie Watkins and Declan Rice also have seats reserved for the fight
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe is set to make the trek down from the north east after managing Newcastle to a 3-0 win over Ipswich
Ruben Dias was recently accused of ‘thirsting over’ Jama in the comments on Instagram
The Manchester City star posted a ‘breathless’ emoji on the picture displayed above
Eubank Jr subsequently missed weight by half an ounce on Friday and was hit with a $500,000/£375,000 fine.
He has also branded his son a ‘disgrace’ for slapping Benn with an egg during a press conference in February.
He said: ‘That is disgraceful. I’m going to be in your corner? I would never have been in your corner; that is a disgrace.
‘You are smashing an egg in someone’s face, and you are trying to justify it. There is no justification for it. There is nothing noble about that.’
Eubank Jr addressed his father’s criticism at Thursday’s final press conference, as he spoke about the ‘pain’ of not having Sr by his side for the biggest fight of his career.
In an emotional monologue, Eubank Jr also opened up about the agony of losing his brother, Sebastian, following a heart attack in Dubai in 2021.
‘I have a 31-year-old brother who is buried in the desert in Dubai; that is pain,’ Jr explained. ‘I have his son, three years old, he asks why can’t I see my daddy? Why can’t he take me to school? That is pain.
‘My own father, a man I idolised for my entire life, and he doesn’t speak to me. We haven’t spoken for years and he thinks I’m a disgrace. These things are what pain is to me.’
