There is no time to waste. The enigmatic Chris Eubank Jr. turns 31 today and the Brighton middleweight is determined to meet the best boxing has to offer as he hits the prime of his career.
That includes Mexican star Canelo Alvarez, WBC champion Jermall Charlo, in action against Sergiy Derevyanchenko next weekend, and IBF king Gennady Golovkin, who Eubank almost fought in 2016 before the bout fell through at the contract stage.
Highly rated by the WBA, Eubank feels he is on the brink of major fights and seems better placed to take advantage, having this year linked up with new trainer Roy Jones Jr. in America.
“I’m No 1 contender for the WBA world titles,” Eubank (29-2, 22 KOs) told Sky Sports. “So Canelo has the ‘Super’ version and Ryota Murata has the ‘Regular’ version. I’m interim WBA world champion, so those are the fights that make sense. I want those belts.
“Charlo, Golovkin, all these guys with belts in my division, whoever I can get fast. Put me in the ring with Canelo, put me in the ring with GGG. These are the guys I want. I understand the situation with Covid. Sometimes these bigger fights are tough to make, but that’s what I want. If I have to fight somebody to get to those guys, then I will do so. In my mind, I only want the top level fights now.
“We’ve got to go full steam ahead. I’ve got two, three years of prime, athletic ability left and then once you start hitting 34, 35, you start seeing that dip. I want to get in as many fights with as many top opponents as I can.
“I’m going to fight before the year is out. There’s no set dates, there’s no set opponent, but we are in talks, we are looking at a fight date at this moment in time. It will be within the next few months. I’m looking for world titles, I’m looking for the best.”