Chris Eubank Sr is not worried about protecting George Groves, he is trying to poison his mind, according to coach Shane McGuigan
British fight legend has insisted the referee protects the Hammersmith champ from damage when he meets his son
CHRIS EUBANK SR has no interest in trying to protect George Groves from a beating courtesy of his son but is just trying to get in the super-middleweight champ’s head.
That is the opinion of Shane McGuigan who will be in Groves’ corner when he defends his WBA belt in the World Boxing Super Series semi-final on February 17.
Both boxers have met with tragedy: Eubank Jr ended the career of Nick Blackwell in 2016 and Groves is still coming to terms with the life-changing damage he did to Eduard Gutknecht.
Yet Eubank Sr – whose own brutal 1991 win over Michael Watson left him with devastating injuries – keeps warning the ref to be hyper-vigilant as his boy is set to do serious harm.
McGuigan hears no concern in Eubank Sr’s words, just an attempt to unsettle Groves and boost his 28-year-old son’s reputation.
The coaching son of ring legend Barry McGuigan said: “It’s mind-games, that is what it is.
“To say to the referee ‘protect George Groves’ – that is nothing but mind-games. It is not to get into the referee’s head, it’s an attempt to try to get into our heads.
“The referee and the governing body are as good as it gets and they do their job right. We are not going to over analyse that.
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"It’s just them trying to play little mind-games and wind us up.
“It does not make a blind bit of difference.”
Despite the heart-breaking injuries Eubanks Sr and Jr have seen inflicted on fighters at both their heavy hands, they insist the youngster will never be pulled out of a fight.
The boast from the Hove family is that they do not own the white towel required for a corner to signal surrender by hurling it into the ring.
And McGuigan says they believe their own hype – meaning Groves will have to KO his man with their plan of attack on body and head.
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McGuigan said: “No matter how big a beating he takes, I do not believe they will pull him out.
“They have built him up to be this invincible man.
“They are not inside his head and if he is getting beaten up then they just think he is invincible.
“The kid is good, he is well-rounded, I think it will be a technical fight early on and then Jr will try to make it a dog fight.
“That is when we are going to make him walk on to a shot and hit him hard.
“He does have a good chin so then we are going to go to the belly to get the job done.”