Chris Eubank Jr says Billy Joe Saunders rematch ‘WILL be made’ and slams rival for ‘quitting’ against Canelo Alvarez
CHRIS EUBANK JR has reassured a rematch with Billy Joe Saunders ‘WILL be made’ and slammed his rival for ‘quitting’ against Canelo Alvarez.
Their feud was not settled after the bitter initial 2014 fight, with the years following fuelling the feud to even greater levels.
Talk of a rematch has since started once more, but Saunders, who won by split-decision, admitted only £5million would convince him to agree.
Eubank Jr has not ruled out the purse being met, but insisted he is in the driving seat as he grows confident in finally securing a shot at revenge.
He said: “That fight would generate a lot of money, it’s not absurd, but I’m not the business guy.
“The fight will be made, Saunders has nowhere else to go. I’m literally the only person he can fight.
“Eddie [Hearn] was talking in an interview the other day saying, basically trying to sell that Saunders would be the A-side.
“He doesn’t have a belt, he doesn’t have any credibility, he doesn’t have the following I have and he has no options, like zero.
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“Whereas, as you’ve seen I have the world, there’s so many fights out there for me, so he is in no way the A-side.
“He has no bargaining chips, he has no right to demand anything.”
Saunders, a two-weight world champion, has admitted his career is up in the air following defeat to Canelo in May.
He was pulled out in round eight against the Mexican superstar, 31, following an uppercut that is said to have left him with four face fractures.
But only six months earlier, Saunders, 31, criticised Daniel Dubois, 23, after the heavyweight took a knee and was counted out against Joe Joyce, 35.
Dubois suffered a similar horror eye injury, but Saunders said he should have been ‘carried out of the ring’ instead of sitting it out.
“The fight will be made, Saunders has nowhere else to go. I’m literally the only person he can fight.
Chris Eubank Jr on Billy Joe Saunders
With his words coming back to bite him, Eubank Jr slammed his former opponent.
He said: “He wasn’t the man he thought he was or that he claimed to be. What he did in quitting after getting hurt, embarrassing, shameful? Yes.
“But, if he hadn’t have said the things he said leading up to that fight, and made the comments he made before, then it wouldn’t have been so bad.
“People could have forgotten about it all. The fact he did everything and said everything before and then goes and does it after saying he’d ‘die in the ring’.
“And, two broken eye sockets and a broken arm, a dislocated neck and whatever ‘I’m never going to give up’ and then he gives up literally after the first hit you take, it was unbelievable.
“And I knew that was in him which is why I put a £10,000 bet on and gave the money to charity afterwards as I was so sure he was going to swallow it, and he did it.”
‘I’D BLOW HIM OUT OF THE WATER NOW’
Despite the incident, which saw Saunders beaten for the first time, Eubank Jr admits his old nemesis would may not be so quick to do a repeat if they rematched.
He said: “Would he do the same against me? With me and him there’s a lot of pride, a lot of pride, we have years and years of beef so I would expect him to be a lot more resistant against me.
“But, I’d blow him out of the water now, when we fought six or seven years ago, however long it was, we were at the same level.
“Even after me not doing anything after six rounds, we still had a split-decision, since that time I’ve improved ten-fold and I feel like he’s the same guy.
“That fight is an exciting fight and if it comes, I’d gladly do the business.”