Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
WORLD BOXING SUPER SERIES JUNIOR: I’M THE DADDY NOW
Eubank stepping out from dad’s shadow in career-defining Groves showdown
CHRIS EUBANK JUNIOR claims he has finally stepped out from his dad’s huge shadow.
Junior feels he is creating his own legacy after spending his whole life being known as Chris Eubank’s son.
He claims tonight’s showdown with George Groves in the semifinals of the Ali Trophy is the career-defining clash he needs to establish himself as an elite fighter in his own right.
“I’ve learned a lot from my father,” he said. “He’s guided me throughout my entire career but I believe I have stepped out of his shadow, especially with a fight like this.
“This writes my name in boxing history, winning a fight like this. That’s what I want – I want to create my own legacy and this is the start.
“I want people to know me for what I do in the ring rather than for who my dad is.”
Eubank, 28, claims he does not need his father any more and trains himself with the help of his dad’s former cornerman Ronnie Davies.
“I’m 28 and I’ve had 27 fights so I don’t need anyone’s advice,” he said. “I’ve been through it and know what to do. My father is my father and you can’t stop him talking. There is always dialogue but his advice is not really there any more. He’s not in the gym every day, Ronnie is. I’m my own man and it’s down to me to do it.”
Eubank will challenge for Groves’s WBA super-middleweight title and is predicting victory because he has the more durable chin. Groves has been stopped twice in his three defeats – both times by Carl Froch – and Eubank claims that shows he is vulnerable.
“Yeah, he can be knocked out, he can be beaten,” said Eubank, whose IBO title is not on the line.
“My chin doesn’t have an off button, his does.
“I’ve heard people say quite a few times that my chin hasn’t been tested in my professional career.
“That to me is a compliment. In all the fights I’ve had over six years, not one fighter has tested my chin.
“That means I’m doing my job, I’m hitting and not getting hit. I know I can take a shot and I know he doesn’t have the power to knock me out. That’s where my confidence comes from in this fight.”