George Groves vs Chris Eubank: Only one winner here

In one of the 2018's most highly anticipated match-ups, 'Saint' George Groves defends his WBA super-middleweight title against Chris Eubank Jr. on 17 February in Manchester, in what could prove to be a classic all-British bust-up.

This is the first of the semi-finals in the World Boxing Super Series in which Groves knocked-out undefeated Brit Jamie Cox while Eubank Jr. defeated Avni Yildirim in a relatively easy fight for the man who has moved up from middleweight to enter this tournament.

Both men seem, as always, very confident going into this fight but it is Groves who should be feeling the most confident come February.

The London-based fighter has seen it all during his 30-fight career having almost stopped Carl Froch up in Manchester, to losing to the highly underrated Badou Jack to then knocking-out Russian terrier Fedor Chudinov up in Sheffield in May to finally realise his dream of becoming a world champion.

Eubank Jr., on the other hand, has not fought anywhere near to the level Groves has faced in the ring. He suffered his only loss to Billy Joe Saunders in a humbling defeat where he came on strong in the last three rounds but simply did not do enough to beat the now WBO champion.

His wins against ‘Spike’ O’Sullivan and Nick Blackwell were impressive however, remain domestic victories while his defeat of legendary German Arthur Abraham was perfect timing considering Abraham can barely make it to the ring he is so old.

I am expecting another stellar performance from Groves, who has looked back to his very best since teaming up with Shane McGuigan in 2016. His jab has always been a class above all of his opponents while his ring IQ compared to Eubank Jr.’s is on a different planet.

Eubank Jr., like all of Groves’ other opponents, will be looking for the Londoner to gas later in the fight however, Eubank Jr. will not have the strength to get on top of Groves and cause him any issues like Jack was able to do.

I am expecting the fight to trend in a very similar pattern to the Chudinov fight with Eubank Jr. looking to outmuscle Groves but simply not being able to do so. Eubank Jr.'s is dangerous when he gets on the inside with that uppercut he possesses however, he will expend so much energy trying to get into scoring positions he will not have any impact when there.

The fact Groves is not even favourite with the bookies is an absolute joke but their loss will be our gain and at 11/8 he looks like an absolute steal. Groves is a massive 168 pounder and his strength alone will be too much for a man moving up from 160 lb.

Prediction: George Groves 

Tom Eckett

@boxingguru44

https://twitter.com/boxingguru44

Eubank Jr. to challenge Blackwell for the British middleweight title

The fight between Nick Blackwell and Chris Eubank Jr. for the British middleweight title has today been announced. This is a fight that has been expected for a long time since Eubank opted out of his three match contract with Matchroom Sports so that he could fight for the British title.

This is a strange move from the fighter who is ranked no.2 by the WBA and has the potential for a future fight with WBA regular champion, Daniel Jacobs or WBA super champion Gennady Golovkin. Both Eubank Jr. and Sr. have, in the past few months, come out and said that Jr. can beat Golovkin then why did they not take the fight with him?

With Golovkin announcing yesterday that he will fight little known Dominic Wade in April, it is clear that Golovkin is short of opponents so what everyone in the sport of boxing knew, was yesterday confirmed, the Eubanks talk a whole load of rubbish.

Furthermore, the reason why this is such a strange move is because Eubank will be fighting Wiltshire born, Nick Blackwell. Blackwell is 19-3-1, with his losses coming against Saunders, Murray and Bursak, all elite level fighters.

This is certainly no walk in the park for Eubank as he probably sees it is. Blackwell impressively stopped southpaw John Ryder in seven rounds to win the British middleweight title back in May 2015 and has since then defended his belt twice.

Blackwell must see this fight as an unbelievable opportunity for him to move up onto the world stage against a fighter who is entirely deluded. Eubank is a good fighter as he showcased against Gary O’Sullivan, he has a vicious uppercut so Blackwell must not let him get on the inside. 

This fight could potentially be a war as Blackwell is a fighter with a lot of heart. If Blackwell can control the range then he will be able to throw his heavy bombs and has a great chance of pulling off an upset. 

Tom Eckett

@boxingguru44

https://twitter.com/boxingguru44