Boxing

CHRIS EUBANK JR was happy to risk everything — even his life — to beat Conor Benn.The 35-year-old Brighton middleweight spent two nights in hospital suffering from dehydration and a damaged eye after a brutal and bloody 12-round slugfest against his bitter rival.Chris Eubank Jr has revealed he was willing to die during his fight with Conor BennCredit: ReutersEubank Jr spent two days in hospital after the fight following a horrific eye injury and dehydrationCredit: ReutersAnd poker-loving Eubank Jr, who won 116-112 on the cards of all three judges, revealed he went ALL IN to come up trumps at a packed Spurs stadium.“There was never a moment where I thought I was losing, I was outgunned, I was hurt,” the star told SunSport.“There were moments in the fight where I knew I was tired, I was dehydrated, but I pushed through that. I didn’t let that stop me from completing the mission.“I was willing to go out on my shield, if that’s what I had to do. I was willing to die in that ring.READ MORE IN BOXING“When there wasn’t any more left in the tank, I still refused to stop. In boxing, sometimes you get asked the ultimate question: Are you willing to go here? Are you willing to do this to win?“A lot of the time fighters don’t answer the question, they don’t risk it. I risked it. And to be fair to Conor, he risked it, too. But the better man won.”The 5ft 11in South Coast boxer struggled to make the 11st 6lb middleweight limit and was fined £375,000 after being just 0.8oz over at the first weigh-in the day before last month’s fight.Eubank Jr finally made the required weight on the morning of the showdown.Most read in BoxingEubank Jr shrunk down to 11st 6lbs to take on BennCredit: ReutersCASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITSBut his whopping fine was handed to Benn, who has since boasted he splashed that on a brand new Rolls-Royce.Asked about the agonies of that weight-cutting process, Eubank revealed how it could never compare to losing 29-year-old brother Sebastian in 2023 and having to explain to three-year-old nephew Raheem why daddy is not around to take him to school.Chris Eubank Jr almost died and was ‘touch and go’ in hospital after Conor Benn fight, claims father Chris SrHe said: “Because of things I’ve gone through, emotion is just not a part of my life. It’s not a part of who I am as a man.“That enables me to do the things I was doing in the tenth, 11th and 12th rounds. If you’re emotional, you can’t go to those depths.“Those are dark places you have to go. Most guys are not capable of going there. I can go there and — while I’m going through it — I’m happy.“I’m enjoying it, as sick as that sounds. I’m enjoying the pain, the suffering and the challenge of what’s happening.“That’s what a fighter is, a true fighter. Someone who enjoys being in that zone, living there, seeing how long you can last.“You need an element of emotionlessness and coldness in your mentality. I’m so grateful to be able to go there. It enabled the fight to be what it was.”The fight with Benn, 28, was a blood-and-guts affair rocketed into the mainstream consciousness because of the iconic two-fight rivalry their double-weight world champion fathers shared.The eleventh-hour arrival of Eubank Sr, 58 — back into his heir’s life and corner after years of estrangement — was a moment that transcended the fight.Jr also got a ‘good-luck’ message from little Raheem on Saturday morning and had much-missed Seb’s name and image etched on to his shorts.“Family is everything,” Junior told us. “The fact that — even at the last minute — we all came together, it meant the world to me. Because I thought I was going to be alone.“I walked into the weigh-in alone, I saw Conor with his team and dad, and I knew — in my heart, in my mind — that that wasn’t going to be what I was going to have on the night.“ ’I’m going to be alone on the night, get used to it’. That was what was going on in my head. And for that to switch at the last minute, it was surreal, it was incredible.“It’s nice to do what you said you were going to do. And to do something fans will remember for a long time.Read More on The Sun“The fans put us in these positions. So to be able to deliver to them, that’s all the fighter can really dream for.” PokerStars ace Chris Eubank Jr spoke exclusively to SunSport from their EPT Monte Carlo. Find out more at www.pokerstarslive.com/ept/montecarlo/Eubank Jr’s father Chris Eubank shocked the world by returning to his estranged son’s side for the fightCredit: GettyEubank Jr’s brother Sebastian Eubank passed away in 2021Credit: Dave Benett/Getty More

TYSON FURY is set to hold talks over a sensational ring return when he comes back from holiday.The former two-time heavyweight champion hung up his gloves in January, just a few weeks after his second-straight defeat to Oleksandr Usyk last December.Tyson Fury has seemingly performed a U-turn on his fifth retirement, which he announced a few weeks after his second loss to Oleksandr UsykCredit: GETTYFury’s U-turn has given fresh hope of a Battle of Britain with Anthony JoshuaCredit: REUTERSFury will hold talks with promoter Frank Warren once he’s back from his holiday in the BahamasCredit: PABut the Gypsy King seemingly ended his fifth retirement from the sport last week with a scathing social media rant at the undefeated Ukrainian.Fury’s public U-turn has reignited hopes of him finally sharing the ring with Brit rival Anthony Joshua.And promoter Frank Warren plans to speak with the Wythenshawe warrior when he’s back from his luxury Bahamas holiday.The Queensberry Promotions chief told The Daily Mail: “When he comes back from his holiday, we’ll talk.READ MORE ON TYSON FURY”But I’m not going to call him about fighting. That’s going to be his choice.”If he wishes to fight on, then fine. If he doesn’t, so be it.”He’s been a magnificent servant for British and world boxing – a two-time world champion who’s done everything asked of him.”Fury and Joshua, 35 and 36 respectively, have twice agreed to fight one another but have frustratingly yet to share the ring.Most read in BoxingJOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUSAnd Warren believes it’ll be relatively easy to make the long-overdue Battle of Britain for a third time.The veteran promoter said: “It’ll be about whether Tyson wants to do it, and whether AJ wants to do it.Tyson Fury training TWO TIMES a day as speculation ramps up over £300m comeback fight against Anthony Joshua”AJ is still active and wants the fight – it’s the one that never happened. Everybody wants to see it.”Fury and Joshua, however, won’t be fighting any time soon as the latter is set to undergo surgery on a niggling elbow injury. More