George Groves Calls out Chris Eubank Jr.'s Social Media Persona, Boxing Record
WBA super-middleweight champion George Groves has taken a shot at Chris Eubank Jr. ahead of their meeting in the semi-finals of the World Boxing Super Series on February 17, saying his opponent has created a social-media persona without fighting real quality opposition.
The two have a long history, dating back to the days Eubank was a prospect who got paid to spar with Groves, per The Independent's Declan Taylor. Fans have been looking forward to their bout for some time, but Groves believes Eubank's high profile is the result of his work on social media, and not his performances in the ring, per David Anderson of the Mirror:
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"He's created this facade of the Rocky-style training montage day in, day out.
"Putting up films of himself doing 98 punches in 11 seconds and stuff like that.
"That's his niche, that's how he's got his success, capturing a certain section of the public's imagination and most importantly, not having a real fight.
"That will capture a fair selection of the public's imagination, but as the fight gets much closer, a lot more people are seeing through it."
He also took a shot at Eubank's father, the former middleweight and super-middleweight star Chris senior, saying: "The dad has absolutely lost the plot."
Groves and Eubank entered the World Boxing Super Series with just four combined losses on their record, and as two of the favourites to win the tournament, behind Germany's Jurgen Brahmer. Brahmer will face Britain's Callum Smith in the other semi-final.
Eubank is the current IBO super-middleweight champion, but he hasn't faced world-class competition since his defeat to compatriot Billy Joe Saunders in 2014, his only loss as a professional.
Boxing Kingdom likes his chances against Groves, however:
Saint George finally won a world title with a win over Fedor Chudinov in 2017, after falling short in his first three title fights. While he's never been known for his great power―20 of his 27 wins have come via stoppage―Groves is a great technician with an excellent feel for space inside the ring.
With the exception of Arthur Abraham in 2017, Eubank has stopped every opponent he has faced since his loss to Saunders.
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