Is Chris Eubank Jr. Up Next For GGG?

Chris Eubank Jr. – In an interview that ran on iFL TV in the U.K., longtime promoter Barry Hearn revealed that he is negotiating to make a fight between Chris Eubank Jr. and Gennady “GGG” Golovkin. If the negotiations bear fruit, said Hearn, the fight will be staged in England in September or October.

That Eubank Jr. is thirsting to fight Golovkin is old news. What is new is that the wheels have been set in motion to make the fight (potentially) happen.

Eubank signed a new promotional agreement with Hearn’s promotional firm, Matchroom Boxing, on May 18. The pair were estranged for one fight, that being Eubank Jr.’s bout with Nick Blackwell on March 26, a match that was nearly fatal for Blackwell who spent seven days in an induced coma after bring stopped in the 10^th round.

Eubank Jr.’s next fight is slated for June 25 underneath Anthony Joshua’s IBF World heavyweight title defense against Dominic Breazeale at London’s O2 Arena. Eubank Jr. (22-1, 17 KOs) opposes Tom Doran (17-0, 7 KOs) in a 12-round contest with Eubank Jr.’s Lonsdale belt at stake. Doran, a Welshman, is coming off a smashing 2^nd round knockout of Luke Keeler, but Eubank Jr. will go to post an overwhelming favorite.

Eubank Jr.’s lone defeat came by split decision in a 12-round contest with Billy Joe Saunders. The verdict was fair, but Eubank Jr. did his best work in the later rounds and dominated the final stanza. The currently undefeated Saunders went on to win the WBO World middleweight title.

A rematch between Eubank Jr. and Saunders would be a big event in England, but the 26-year-old Eubank Jr. has set his sights on a bigger fish. According to Hearn, Eubank and his father of the same name believe that GGG (35-0, 32 KOs) has a flaw in his arsenal and are obsessed with the idea of exploiting it.

The elder Eubank was a world champion in two weight classes and participated in 24 bouts sanctioned for world titles. Barry Hearn, who promoted 19 of Chris Eubank’s 24 title fights, is on record as saying that the son will ultimately eclipse the father in career earnings and world recognition.

Barry Hearn, who made his first fortune promoting snooker, turns 68 this month. While he is still involved in boxing, his son Eddie Hearn handles the nuts and bolts of the boxing side of his business. iFL.TV (yes, the first letter is lower case) was founded in 2010. The social media company is pitched as the leading source for online boxing content in the United Kingdom.

Chris Eubank Jr.

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