Chris Eubank Jr has opened up on his acrimonious split with his dad ahead of his upcoming clash with Conor Benn.
Eubank Jr and Benn will meet at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on April 26, which is 32 years after their fathers last locked horns.
In 1990, Eubank Sr stopped Benn in the ninth round at Birmingham’s Resorts World Arena.
The pair boxed to a contentious split draw at Old Trafford three years later – which Chris Eubank Sr has since admitted should have been awarded to Nigel Benn.
A trilogy was expected to follow but it never came to fruition.
Now, their sons are set to finish what their dads started.
Nigel has been heavily involved in the build-up to the grudge match, but Eubank Sr has been absent due to a falling out with his son.
Explaining the catalyst for the rift during a recent appearance on Piers Morgan Uncensored, Eubank Jr said: “It got to a stage where I needed to step out of the shadow completely. It’s a big shadow.
“I realised I have to separate myself from this huge character that’s always next to me.
“He’s different. His father kind of let him do his own thing; jump in and sink or swim.
“My old man was always next to me. I got to a stage where I decided that I needed to walk my own path.
“He was not happy with that decision. And then you have a situation with my brother passing away.
“That affected him in a deep way — affected all of us — mental health is a real thing.
“That incident, coupled with the fact that we were already not seeing eye to eye, destroyed a large part of the relationship and it still hasn’t recovered.”
Despite their differences, Eubank Jr remains hopeful his father will be there on fight night.
“Of course [I’ve reached out],” he added. “No, he hasn’t [rebuffed me].
“He needs to be able to get over whatever demons he’s fighting.
“Now, this fight is either gonna enable him to get over those demons or unfortunately it’s gonna make those demons grow. I don’t know.
“I still hope he’s there on the night, just like [Benn’s] old man will be.
“I honestly don’t know. I hope and I pray that he is [there], and I will do things to try and get him there.
“But if he isn’t, guess what? I’m still gonna go out there and do the job.”
