The location: AO Arena in Manchester. The date: September 02, 2023. The time: 22:00 GMT. The event: (hold on to your hats, people…) the much expected and highly sought after for tickets rematch between Chris Eubank Junior and Liam Smith. The most prominent question on this one is easy: will it be a repeat of the first bout in January where Smith knocked out Eubank, or will the Hove born fighter will take his revenge?
The boxing match will be the headliner in an event that will also host another 7 bouts with the first one to be held at 18:00 GMT. The rematch was originally slated for July 1. However, it was postponed due to a hand injury that Smith had suffered. Now, he is 100% ready and it’s all about to happen in a little over a week from now.
The first encounter
The two Brits fought it off at the same location on January 21st and it lasted 4 out of the 12 scheduled rounds. During the first three it was quite competitive and rather frantic. However, at the beginning of the 4th, Smith pinned Eubank at his own corner. A barrage of fists blows followed that concluded with the referee Victor Laughlin stopping the bout. It was obvious that Eubank was confused, hurt and could not defend himself any further, even though he pushed the official and tried to get back into it.
In the aftermath of the defeat, Eubank called the outcome «an accident» that no one expected. In his statements for the new confrontation, he calls it more or less, an «all or nothing» proposition, clearly indicating his intensions. The truth of it is that the Hovan is now at the same position that Smith was in their first bout. Another defeat will most likely finish off his career as a fighter.
Mouthing off each other
Both fighters had a lot to say for the rematch. According to Eubank:
“There’s much more on the line now, much more danger in this fight now. He (cc Smith) has his newfound confidence, which he didn’t have in the first fight”
To this one Smith replied:
“Look at the interviews we did (before the first fight). I said I can beat you every week and twice on a Sunday.”
to receive a comment that shows the psychology behind Eubank:
“Talk is cheap. I know you didn’t believe what was gonna happen, nobody did. It’s not gonna happen again and that’s why this fight is gonna be so much more exciting because I have everything to prove.»
That last «I have everything to prove» is probably the key to the fight. Eubank is under tremendous pressure and it all depends on how he is going to handle it. It could very well work in his favor and give him that little something extra that will win him the bout. However, it could just as easily lead him to mistakes that will be the end of him in boxing. And he is quite aware of it:
“Before it was like, I just need to go in there and win now. Now it’s, if I lose if and this happens again, where do I go? That wasn’t the case in the first fight, so it’s going to be very interesting to see how that kind of affects my performance.”
A very significant change
Brian McIntyre took over as lead trainer for Chris Eubank replacing Roy Jones. For the uninitiated, McIntyre was also the lead trainer for Terence Crawford, the man who managed to claim the title of Word Champion in three different weight classes: welterweight, lightweight and light welterweight. Of even further importance is that Crawford never lost. His record is 40 wins out of 40 matches with 31 of them being knock outs.
It’s rather evident that we will see something different from Eubank on the ring on Sep 02. Will it be enough to change things around? We’ll see next Saturday. The bookmakers do not seem to think that it will have that much of an impact, judging by the odds they offer:
- Win for Eubank:@2.287
- Win for Smith:@1.659
- Over 10.5:@1.732
- Under 10.5: @2.138
As we see it
Wild animals are the most dangerous when they are backed in a corner and have everything to fight for. Seemingly, both fighters appear to have the same predicament. Whichever loses will suffer a significant impact in his career. However, we think that the consequences will be far less for Smith. No one will blame him for losing a rematch. Eubank, on the other hand, stands to lose everything. And that is enough of a motive for him to go on the ring all guns blazing. Another question is the status of the hand injury for Smith. Is he really at 100% or will it serve as an excuse for after a loss? We’ll see.
Update
Very little has changed since we first discussed about the much-awaited rematch between the two fighters. A little lower for Eubank (@2.237 over @2.387) and a little higher for Smith (@1.687 over @1.659). The offers for an over/under 10.5 remained the same.
Our assessment of the whole deal for this one has not changed. Eubank has a lot more to prove and a higher motive than Smith. We can expect a change of tactics from both sides. Chris now knows exactly what Liam can do. We expect that he will come out on the ring much more aggressive, but also a lot more aware of the punishment that he can suffer. And Smith would know that, so it’s unlikely that he will charge the same way he did on the first bout.
However, the aggressiveness could turn to be a liability for Eubank. In his yearning to win he may make a lot of mistakes and that would be the end of it. But we believe that his new trainer will have taken that into account and prepared him for it. And Brian McIntyre is well-known for the discipline in his orders. Furthermore, the success at the first bout is enough of a reason to induce overconfidence to Liam Smith. It’s the usual case of a victory leading to complacency. His trainer will have pointed this out to him, but sometimes fighters that have won a fight, do not listen to instructions for the rematch.
As we said in the preview, there’s nothing more dangerous than a wild animal trapped in a corner. And this is Eubank Jr in this case. Therefore, we will suggest a simple wager on his victory. So, if you haven’t done so already, go ahead and open an account at the best betting tool and wait for your earnings.