Eubank Jr. wants Lonsdale belt before looking for world glory

The Lonsdale Belt is the oldest championship belt in boxing and its status among British fighters has resulted in some fantastic dust-ups over the years.

On March 26th, Chris Eubank Jr gets another chance to capture the prestigious belt when he challenges Nick Blackwell for the British middleweight title at the Wembley Arena.

Blackwell earned the middleweight strap last May with a fantastic stoppage win over John Ryder. Eubank will be keen not to repeat the result of his first crack at the British title when he came up short against the now WBO middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders.

So why has Eubank opted to face Blackwell over a mandatory shot at WBA middleweight champion Daniel Jacobs? At the press conference he gave his answer as the two fighters came face-to-face. “This is something from a very early age that I always wanted to accomplish in my career,” Eubank Jr said of the British title. “Once we get in there and start fighting, he’ll show cowardice and end up quitting or getting knocked out.”

Having already shared a ring in sparring both fighters should have a rough idea of what they’re up against. Blackwell wasn’t shy to share his version of events.  “He knows. That’s why he hasn’t took the last three times we were supposed to fight. He knows what happened last time in sparring,“ said the middleweight champion.

Despite showing respect to his son’s opponent, the presence of Eubank Sr, or ‘English’ as he now prefers to be called, ensured the presser wasn’t without its share of poetic sparring. “It’s difficult to find anyone with his speed, his irrepressibility, his attitude, his cold-like demeanour, “ remarked Eubank’s father. “Again in my view, as a former participant, I can’t see anyone in the middleweight division or super middleweight division staying with him in boxing.”

Eubank is coming off an impressive seventh round stoppage over domestic rival Gary ‘Spike’ O’Sullivan and will approach the 26th as the odds-on favourite. Blackwell will be planning on proving the bookmakers wrong.

– Richard Middleton / @1outsidetherope

Published on behindthegloves.com

An expert opinion

Ahead of the Kell Brook vs. Shawn Porter clash, I spoke to former British Welterweight Champion, Ross “The Boss” Minter.

Ross retired from the sport at age 30 sporting an impressive record of 17 wins, one draw and just four defeats. The son of the highly acclaimed former world middleweight champion, Alan Minter, claimed Southern Area and English Welterweight titles and was once lined up as a potential opponent for Sheffield’s Kell Brook.

1OTR: “Ross, thank you for taking the time to talk to us. You’re very familiar with the welterweight division – just how special is Kell Brook?”

Ross: “Six years ago when coming to the end of my professional career, I was offered to box Kell Brook for the British title, but even then he was the young up and coming prospect to avoid, so we stepped that one. Since then he has just kept on progressing.”

1OTR: “Why do the bookies have Porter as the firm favourite?”

Ross: “I think the bookies can’t overlook Brook’s power and accuracy, but I feel they may be assuming that with Brook boxing away from home and him trying to deal with Porter’s pace that the fight will be much more in Porter’s favour.”

1OTR: “How do you see the fight going on Saturday?”

Ross: “I have two views on this. If Brook gets too involved and Porter is allowed to open up on the inside (which I hope does not happen) then we could see a Porter stoppage within seven rounds. If Brook keeps it at range and boxes the right fight, picking Porter off with his fantastic punch variety, we could see a Brook win edged on points. Though I will also say that Brook’s power cannot be overlooked. (Ross laughs) This is what you call sitting on the fence, I suppose. One thing I know is this will be a fantastic fight to watch.”

1OTR: “Ross, thank you for your take on this one and we look forward to speaking to you again soon.”

Ross: “No problem, Richard.”