Shawn Porter has shared his view on the upcoming rematch between Conor Benn and Chris Eubank Jr.
The first fight in April lived up to the hype that had been building for over two years, with plenty of drama along the way from egg slaps and failed drug test to the ending of a feud between Eubank Jr and his father, who turned up on fight night to be in his son’s corner.
The fight was a 12-round war in which both men were aggressive, but after 12 rounds it was the naturally bigger Eubank who got control and ran out a points winner.
They will now meet again at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on November 15, and two-time welterweight champion Porter has made his prediction having sparred Benn in the past.
Speaking to Seconds Out, Porter explained why he thinks the rematch will go the same way, and it’s down to size.
“Benn showed to me what we won’t see in this fight. We have the same thing, a Conor Benn who cuts from 168, 170lbs no to get to 154 lbs.
“You’re not losing that weight, you’re carrying that weight, but you’re carrying inexperience along with it, and one of the things he’s carrying is that he’s fighting a guy that’s legitimately taller, legitimately bigger.
“Once he gets past the big explosive punches that he missed, which of course helps him slow down anyway, he didn’t know how to get at Chris Eubank Jr. And whether it’s six or eight months I don’t think they can figure out that equation. So that’s why I don’t think it changes.”
He did offer one caveat, and it came down to power.
“The thing that may change is he may catch Chris with that big punch that he missed so many times in the first fight and if he does that, that changes the fight cause I don’t think Chris Eubank Jr has the best chin, so that’s what could possibly change. Outside of catching that punch, I think Chris Eubank Jr handles it the way he did last time.”
As in the first fight, Benn will be fighting at 160 lbs and is hoping Eubank will be hampered by a rehydration clause on the day of the fight that limits him to putting on no more than 10 lbs after the weigh-in, though Eubank’s team say he has not yet committed to that.
