Eubank Sr. concerned for his son's safety: "He’s shot"

Eubank Sr. concerned for his son's safety if he continues to fight: "Boxing kills you"

Chris Eubank Sr. spoke all about his fear for his son Junior if he continues in his boxing career in this weeks episode of Playbook Boxing powered by Betway.

Junior was dropped twice in the last round of his rematch with Conor Benn in 2025, after spending the entirety of the fight looking like a shell of himself due to exhaustion and dehydration. Despite the poor performance and bad health, the two-weight IBO champion plans to return to the ring later this year.

The 59-year-old former two-weight world champion strongly disagrees with his decision and said the following of his 36-year-old son, "He’s shot. He’s spent.

"The boxing authorities, the boxing experts, everyone can see it, but no one's paying attention to it.

"And I'm not going to be a party to that. I've got to stay alone. I’ve got to stay the lone ranger, for the rules. Only when the rules come back can we then produce a calibre of fighter that can excite us. I'm not talking about one or two, when we used to produce 15, 20, when we had the Fantastic Four, we had the eras of boxing.

"I have given my life to this. I only can wish Junior luck and mercy. It’s a very tricky world and it hasn't changed, yet. There's a change coming."

When asked if he was concerned for his son's safety, he answered instantly, "Of course.

"I've learned the hard way. When someone doesn't want you… I can't have a relationship with you if you don't take my advice. I've got to talk to you about something. And all I have to give you is advice."

He turned his attention to the fickle and callous nature of the sport, "If a fighter loses twice, and he’s cut, or if you didn't make the mark, you become fodder.

"My brother Simon died of frontal lobe dementia, 20 losses, seven wins. This is what happens. Boxing kills you.

"These guys, they don't care about that. They're only looking at the money. So everything that I am going to continue to do in accordance to my plan. I have faith."

Eubank Jr defeated Conor Benn in an epic battle and close contest in April 2025, but was then beaten widely in the November rematch. Despite struggling to make weight for the first fixture and forced to pay a fine for every pound he weighed over the limit, the middleweight and super-middleweight champion went straight back into the rematch less than seven months later and looked weak and lethargic.

His father advised his first-born not to take the rematch and put his body through the mill again, which was ignored.

"Junior is a businessman. Junior said to me, if it doesn't make money, it doesn't make sense.

"Junior is not me. I said, don't take the second fight, you can't take it. Now you can walk off and you will never want for anything. He gave it up. He gave up kingship. The fight perhaps shouldn't even be big enough to give him that magnitude of labour, but they built the fight so big with all the drugs, the egg, the cancellation – they built it so big, the world watched it. So for the rest of his life he could have been like me – I’ve done it."

After suffering the fourth loss of his 15-year pro career, the Brighton boxer was hospitalised overnight, accompanied by his caring father who stayed at his bedside.

"It is traumatizing. When you have a son, you love him. I may not like some of his ways, but I love him.

"I can't give you anything. I can't give you anything because you will not accept it from me. I don't know why, I wrote him a letter not too long ago saying that when you were an adolescent, someone got into your head. Because I don't understand why all I do is help, and it's not just help. Lucky is an understatement. Midas touch is an understatement. I am gold. I am money.

"Spiritually, I understand it now. If I'm giving you all of these gifts, which will build this and build notoriety, then surely you would be on my side and surely you would be thankful for this. The way I deal with it now is, 'I love you, and you go and learn the hard way. And I'll still be here when you come back'."

Things you didn’t know about Chris Eubank Jr.