Sky’s Head of Boxing Development Adam Smith believes on Saturday night we will see whether or not Chris Eubank Jr being trained by Roy Jones Jr is working out.
It has been well over a year since Eubank upped sticks to go and work with the legendary figure in Pensacola but performances in the ring since then haven’t turned heads.
Comfortable wins over Marcus Morrison and Wanik Awdijan took the Brit’s fight record to 31 wins in 33 fights. His 34th, this weekend against Liam Williams, will be his toughest test on paper since facing the likes of Matvey Korobov and James DeGale in 2019
Eubank’s two wins in 2021 were never in doubt but the explosiveness we had become accustomed to from the middleweight had gone missing. Smith, who will also be commentating on Saturday’s main event on Sky Sports, gave his thoughts to Boxing Social’s Andi Purewal about the star-studded trainer/fighter relationship that is yet to catch fire.
“Roy is trying to get his magic through to Chris and he is the athlete that’s got to do what Roy Jones wants to do and can he do that? Chris believes he’s learned a great deal from him.
“We can’t really look too much into what happened in Newcastle [against Awdijan], there was a few rounds there. He got the rust off; it was obviously the first time he got back in the ring since [his brother] Seb died. This [fight on Saturday] is where we’re going to find out whether this combination works.”
Eubank v Williams is something of a crossroads fight for the pair. The Welshman, who will have home advantage on the night in Cardiff, has already challenged for a world title and lost. While his bitter rival has yet to hit the heights on the world scene that had been talked about by fighter and team as soon as he turned pro.
“It’s a pivotal fight for Chris Eubank Jr,” said Smith. “He’s 32. If he’s going to become a world champion, he’s gotta win this fight and he’s gotta look good doing it as well.
“Liam Williams, this is his world title fight at home. He fought [Demetrius] Andrade but this is his moment in front of his fans, and I think he’ll give absolutely everything. Will that play into Chris’s hands? Maybe, but he’s [Eubank] going to have to be ready for an intensity that he probably hasn’t been used to in a while.”
Click here to watch the rest of the interview with Smith who talked about Anthony Joshua’s future, Taylor-Serrano, Fury-Whyte and much more.