At the SSE Wembley Arena last night (Saturday), Chris Eubank Jnr made the first defence of his IBO world super-middleweight title.
Matched against the vastly experienced Arthur Abraham, an opponent described as Eubank?s toughest so far of his career, Eubank Jnr produced a convincing display that suggests he could be a serious candidate to win the inaugural World Boxing Super Series.
Eubank?s skills were far superior to those of Abraham as he produced a display that saw the judges score the fight:
? 118 ? 110 (in favour of Eubank)
? 120 ? 108 (in favour of Eubank)
? 118 ? 110 (in favour of Eubank)
Throughout the twelve rounds Abraham soaked up some incredible punishment but the former world middleweight and super-middleweight world title holder maintained his proud record of never having been stopped.
In his post-fight interview, Eubank Jnr had this to say about the fight,
‘He’s the most durable opponent I’ve faced. I hit him with every punch in the book.
‘I’m happy with the performance. I got to show my skills, I got to go the 12 rounds and get the experience in.’
The win takes Eubank Jnr?s record to 25-1 and his next fight will be in the World Boxing Super Series, where he will face the Turkish fighter Avni Yildirim in the autumn.
However, his father Chris Eubank Snr, has no doubts regarding the standing of his son in the super-middleweight division, remarking,
‘I believe he’s the best in the world. Over the coming nine months, he will be able to clean the slate and come away with the Muhammad Ali Trophy and all the belts.’
The next nine months promise to be an exciting period for the super-middleweight division, even more so if Eubank Jnr continues in the form he showed last night.
As for Abraham, the defeat was the sixth of his career and at 37-years-of-age, retirement could now be beckoning.
Eubank Jnr Beats Abraham to Retain Title
