Middleweight rival Chris Eubank Jr. is scheduled to face veteran Liam Smith on Saturday night in Manchester, England on DAZN.
CHRIS EUBANK JR. (32-2, 23 KOs) vs LIAM SMITH (32-3-1, 19 KOs)
- Day: Saturday, January 21
- Time: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT (main event follows)
- Where: AO Arena, Manchester, England
- television/stream: DAZN
- Assignment: Middleweight (160 pounds)
- threatened: No main title
- Pound-for-pound ratings: Not available
- the odds: Eubank 2½-1 favorite (average of many stores)
- Also on the card: Richard Riakporhe vs Krzysztof Głowacki, cruiser class; Joseph Parker versus Jack Massey, heavyweights; Ekow Essuman vs. Chris Kongo, heavyweight
- Guess: UD Eubank
- Story: Chris Eubank Jr. was scheduled to meet rival Conor Benn in a highly anticipated 157-pound bout on October 8 of last year but the war has been eliminated after Benn tested positive for banned substances. Three months later, Eubank will face another Briton, former 154-pound owner Liam Smith. Eubank, 33, is playing at the top of his game, having won six straight games since losing to then-world champion George Groves by a unanimous decision in 2018. The last time he fought in last February, when he put Liam Williams down four times and won a broad decision. Smith, 34, also recently achieved success. He has won three matches in a row since losing to Magomed Kurbanov in a unanimous decision in May 2021. His most recent match was last September, when he stopped Hassan Mwakinyo for four. rounds in a scheduled 160-pound 12-round match. Smith is rated 154 pounds by all four major sanctioning agencies. He may be best known for losing the 154-pound title to Canelo Alvarez by a ninth-round knockout in 2016 at AT&T Stadium outside Dallas.
