Chris Eubank Jr. and George Groves is the fight to watch this weekend
Chris Eubank Jr. and George Groves meet in the semifinals of the World Boxing Super Series. This match has Fight of the Year potential.
On Saturday, Feb. 17, American boxing fans will probably be watching bouts taking place in the states. There’s a lot happening this Saturday: Alexander vs. Ortiz, Benavidez vs. Gavirl, and Garcia vs. Rios. Instead, their attention should be on streaming the matchup between Chris Eubank Jr. vs George Groves in Manchester, England.
Eubank and Groves are meeting in the super middleweight version of the World Boxing Super Series. They are not household names in the U.S., but they should be.
Groves has been around for a while. He is 27-3, with 20 knockouts. He’s the current WBA super middleweight champion. He found success early in his career beating James DeGale, Paul Smith, and Glen Johnson, but his career was in trouble when he lost back-to-back fights against Carl Froch in 2013 and 2014.
Since that time, he has won eight of his last nine bouts. Despite his recent success, he is a slight underdog according to Odds Shark which peg his odds between +130 and +160. Many in the UK believe that Groves is the favorite despite the current betting lines.
“But compared to George, he’s not so powerful,” Sergey Rozvadovskij told Boxing News about Eubank. “He’s smaller, he’s definitely a middleweight, and that means he doesn’t hit as hard.”
Rozvadovskij’s opinion carries weight because he sparred with both Groves and Eubank.
“It will be a unanimous decision for George,” Rozvadovskij predicted.
There are several factors that should be considered in Rozvadovskij’s analysis. He has a lot more experience working with Groves than Eubank. He told the Boxing News he’s sparred Eubank four or five times, but has gone hundreds of rounds with Groves.
This shows a bit of inherent bias on Rozvadovskij’s part. His added experience with Groves might equate to added respect. Also, he never specifies when he sparred with Eubank. Eubank is a much better boxer today than he was several years ago.
Eubank is a rising star and is the IBO super middleweight champion. He has a record of 26-1, with 20 knockouts. His lone defeat came against Billy Joe Saunders in 2014.
Eubank has come a long way since his loss to Saunders. He has knocked out four of his last five opponents. His last bout against Avni Yildirim was probably his most impressive. Yildirim was undefeated but Eubank tore through him with a flurry of hooks that ended Yildirim’s night in the third.
Rozvadovskij’s critique of the size disparity between Eubank and Groves is a bit overblown. Groves is only a half inch taller and Eubank actually has a half-inch reach advantage. Looking at pictures, Groves does look more than a half-inch taller than Eubank, but they can be deceiving.
Groves is thicker, but Eubank has tremendous power and his power has carried over well to the super middleweight division thus far.
Groves will try to keep Eubank at arm’s length while Eubank has to get inside on Groves to win this fight.
The Eubank of three years ago wouldn’t beat the current version of Groves, but he’s developed quickly. His confidence is high, his ring intelligence has grown, and he is a better natural athlete than Groves.
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Eubank will win this fight with his hand speed, athleticism and ability to take a punch. He will be able to walk through Groves’s power to get in close. Look for Eubank to win this fight by decision.
Regardless of who wins, this will be an action fight. It will be a competitive battle between two warriors. When the final bell rings, this will be a Fight of the Year contender.