Middleweight Chris Eubank Jr 32-2 (23) will take on welterweight Conor Benn 21-0 (14) at the O2 Arena in London, England on October 8.
The fight come almost 29 years to the day since their father last locked horns in their rematch bout in Manchester that was declared a split draw. Chris Eubank Sr defeated Nigel Benn by ninth-round stoppage in their first bout in Birmingham in 1990.
The next chapter in this family rivalry is expected to take place at catchweight of 156-pounds.
“I grew up watching their legendary battles and always wanting to emulate that, and find my own arch nemesis… could this now be Conor Benn? We will find out,” said Eubank Jr.
“He has walked the same path as I have. I know his struggle. Living in the shadow of a legend and trying to break out of that shadow and make his own name. If he can beat me, his name will be made, and he will never walk in his father’s shadow again. It’s the biggest fight of my career.”
“This fight is for the legacy and was an opportunity I felt I couldn’t pass up,” said Benn. “My team and I had other options on the table as I’m currently ranked top five with all governing bodies at welterweight and no doubt, I’m looking for a world championship fight very soon, but this fight is embedded with so much history and I know it’s one the public really want to see.
“To me this fight is personal – it’s more than titles and rankings, this is unfinished business between our families!
“Born Rivals is the perfect calling for this fight because we have always been associated and I’ve always been asked if we’d ever fight, and now I can’t wait for the world to be able to watch us make that happen.
“All I know is that from my side, this will be an all-out war, last man standing kind of fight. Neither will give up until the last bell rings. I won’t be looking to take this to the scorecards though, this will be explosive from the off. I’m so up for this.”
“I can’t quite believe this is happening but let me tell you, it’s happening!” said Eddie Hearn, Matchroom Sport chairman. “Weeks of negotiations have led to one of the biggest moments in British boxing – these two Born Rivals will do battle in an epic match up that has absolutely everything. Ever since they both turned professional, people talked about this moment and now is the time to see the historic rivalry continue. I want to thank DAZN for all their support in making this mega fight – roll on October 8!”
“Throughout 20 years of promoting boxing on the highest level, from unification fights to heavyweight world championship bouts all over the world, this is without doubt the most iconic fight we’ve had the pleasure of promoting,” said Kalle Sauerland, Wasserman’s head of global boxing.
“I fell in love with boxing as a teenager growing up in London, watching the original Eubank vs Benn saga and it gives me a huge sense of pride to now be promoting Eubank vs Benn decades later.”
“We are thrilled to be broadcasting this mega fight in October to boxing fans around the world,” said Joseph Markowski, EVP, DAZN. “Benn and Eubank are two of the most storied names in British boxing, and in Conor and Chris you have two of the most exciting fighters around. This fight is not to be missed and we look forward to showcasing this blockbuster evening worldwide on DAZN.”
