CHRIS EUBANK JR reckons he was robbed of a brutal battering by Liam Smith — and would have enjoyed it.
In January, the Brighton ace was demolished by Liverpool’s star in the fourth round.
For the first time in his career he was dropped and stopped. Most fans are not keen on the June 17 rematch, so convincing was the original.
But Eubank Jr, whose father Chris had a legendary chin, has been stewing over the result.
He had the option of a June 3 showdown with Conor Benn after the original October bout was cancelled.
But the stink around Benn’s ongoing Ukad doping case meant that toxic Brit battle was shelved.
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Returning slugger Eubank Jr, 33, said: “The thing I regret is not being given the chance to get through it — I wanted to continue and have the chance to overcome adversity.
“But I feel I was robbed of that challenge. We sign up to get hurt and the possibility of punishment.
“So it just didn’t sit well with me that I wasn’t given the opportunity to recover.
“If I was due a beating, great, that’s what I deserved, I would have accepted and enjoyed it.
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“I am a grizzled veteran and know how much I can take and when I can’t go on.
“A lot of people paid to see me get my a**e kicked and then they never got that, they wanted to see me take even more shots.”
No-nonsense Smith, 34, said: “You don’t need to be a genius to see he is falling over all of his words.
“Lots of people said he could have been stopped from the first knockdown.
“He got credit and the chance to carry on based on his career, he went down and got up — but he couldn’t stand up the second time.
“I think he’s finished, he was terrified of getting hit. He was always game and seemed to fancy a fight, yet from the first clinch I knew he didn’t fancy.
“I am even more determined to beat him now — and I know I can hurt him to the head and body — this time I will make him say, ‘The best man won’.
Eubank Jr insisted he was genetically gifted with an unbreakable chin and had never been hurt.
Now, however, he is going into a must-win rematch in the knowledge that he may not have inherited quite as strong a chin as his dad.
He added: “I have a new desire. A new fire that maybe I didn’t have before because I didn’t fear him.
“I don’t fear him now but I know I can be hurt and buzzed — so I have to respect what is coming at me. It will be a lot more serious now.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
