Promoter Ben Shalom of Boxxer believes the career of Chris Eubank Jr. is certainly at stake in the upcoming rematch with Liam Smith.
Back in January, Smith scored a sensational knockout of Eubank in four rounds. It was the first knockout loss of Eubank’s career.
Smith, a former world champion at 154-pounds, was moving up to the middleweight division and was widely viewed as a big underdog.
After mulling other options, Eubank ultimately exercised an immediate rematch clause to fight Smith for a second time.
The two rivals will collide for a second time on June 17 in Manchester.
Shalom admits that initially he wasn’t sold on the idea of a Smith-Eubank rematch.
“When the rematch clause was first put in, I was kicking and screaming. I didn’t want it in there. Then when it got activated, again, I didn’t think it was necessary. But, when you look at the landscape and you see Chris Eubank Jr come in with a different demeanor and more serious demeanor, knowing that possibly his career is on the line, I think wow this is a monster fight,” Shalom told Daily Mail.
“This is much bigger than the first one. The first one felt like the Chris Eubank Jr show and fans didn’t really believe that Liam Smith could win that fight and he won it emphatically. Now Liam Smith is the A-side. Chris Eubank Jr’s career is on the line. It’s a massive, massive fight. But, credit to Chris Eubank Jr. He’s going back into the same ring, the same arena and it’s all on the line.
“I think as a fighter at his level with the pride that he has, I don’t think he had a choice. Knowing that the rematch clause was there for him to activate, I think he needed that. He won’t be able to sleep at night [after losing to Liam Smith]. I know Chris Eubank Jr and this guy is a winner. He is a very intelligent man. What happened to him in January shocked him as much as it shocked everyone else.”