Eubank Jr. Made The ‘Favorite' For The Benn Fight

Amir Khan has given his take on the Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn fight.

The fight takes place on April 26, with many question marks heading into this bout. Eubank Jr. will be coming down to 160 pounds with the additional implementation of a ten-pound rehydration clause. Meanwhile, Benn will move up from 147-154 for the first time. Chris Eubank Sr. has been vocal about this fight, refusing to put his support behind it. He has said he will not attend the fight, highlighting the safety concerns.

Kell Brook previously moved up from welterweight to fight GGG at 160. He lost the fight, breaking his eye socket in the process. Naturally, will Benn be able to impose himself on someone who has only been stopped? Meanwhile, will the rehydration clause make Eubank weaker? Khan was on hand to watch Benn spar. He felt Benn was looking sharper than ever, although he recognized that Eubank was the favorite.

Khan Reacts

"Conor Benn will be in safe hands, because Eubank’s not the biggest puncher. He’s very technical, but I think Conor might actually be the bigger puncher in that fight by putting a bit of weight on. So I think it’s very evenly matched, a good fight for both fighters. I’d say it’s 60–40 in favour of Eubank just because of the weight, the height, and the size.

"But listen, anything can happen in boxing. Conor Benn could start fast and could go straight in and knock him out early. The way he’s been training – he looks explosive. I’ve been watching him train for the Eubank fight, and he looks really dangerous. I think he’s got that love back again. You need that dancing partner to bring the hunger back, and I think Eubank is that guy," Khan said

Khan understands what it takes to move up in weight. He did so when faced Canelo Alvarez, moving up from welterweight to a catchweight of 155 pounds. It was Khan’s first fight at that weight, as the difference in power was noticeable. Khan was outboxing Canelo during the first part of the fight. However, it all changed when he stayed in the pocket for too long.

Dangers Of Moving Up

Canelo landed a massive right hand that dropped Khan to the canvas as the fight was over. Looking back, Khan would have perhaps been better off not taking that fight. Since that loss, he was never the same fighter. He won three out of his next five fights but lost to Terence Crawford and Kell Brook. His former trainer, Vergil Hunter, was not on board with the idea of Khan fighting Canelo.

"Amir’s got guts. The last fight, I was totally against it. I did not want him to take that fight. But he was pushed into it. That was crazy to me. It was pushed on me, so you do what you have to do. There was no margin for error, and no concessions made from the top or the bottom. So you just don’t have any margin for error, and you’ve gotta go into it with some margin for error. And he just didn’t have it. He followed the plan until he had a mental lapse and got caught. Simple as that," Hunter said

Find all the latest boxing news and MMA breaking updates on boxingnews.com.