The first semifinal bout of the World Boxing Super Series super middleweight tournament has been won by George Groves via wide unanimous decision. Chris Eubank Jr showed a lot of heart down the stretch, but he was thoroughly outclassed over twelve rounds. It wasn’t a clean, classy fight, but it was an interesting one to watch.
The stage seemed like maybe it was getting to Chris Eubank Jr (26-2, 20 KOs) in the first round of the fight. He fought at a range not conducive to winning on the outside and all but seemed to hand the round to George Groves (28-3, 20 KOs). Saint George didn’t get a lot done, but he he at least landed a couple shots in an otherwise uneventful frame. The second round wasn’t a lot better and I really began to worry for the son of the British legend. He looked nervous and entirely unsure of himself. He is never a technical fighter, but even the basics seemed to elude him.
Though he still looked raw and unpolished, the challenger did finally get through with a good shot in the third that did seem to bother the WBA titleholder. It may have been enough to get him his first round. Unfortunately, he also had a nasty cut opened over his right eye in the round too after an accidental head clash. Groves reasserted himself in the fourth, however. Chris Eubank Jr just wasn’t showing any real skillset to use to close the distance without being predictable and getting hit with a right hand. He did land a good right hand in the last ten seconds or so though.
The fifth round was a strange one in which Chris Eubank Jr displayed some of his most amateurish tendencies, but he also landed most of the power shots. He looked bad and won the round on my card anyway. In the sixth Eubank Jr got much more the fight that he wants with his mauling style, but it was largely ineffective. The problem was that George Groves didn’t really get anything done in response either. I gave it to the defending titleholder largely on a few nice jabs.
Saint George found his right hand again in the seventh on a pair of reckless lunges from his amateurish opponent. He still didn’t get a lot done, but he clearly won the round as Eubank only really accomplished embarrassing himself with his lack of technique. At this point the ITV commentary team was pleading with Eubank to find something else, but it didn’t look like there was much more he was capable of in the ring at this level. He kept up his crude tactics in losing the eighth as it is all he knows. Action did flare up towards the end of the eighth with a big flurry where both men landed.
Eubank responded by upping the intensity to start the ninth, but the WBA titleholder used his far superior footwork to re-establish his proper distance and it didn’t last. The challenger did manage to get some of the mauling work he wanted going, but Groves was still getting the better of it more often or not. Going into the tenth Groves had won a decision on my card if he stays on his feet. His chin was tested in the first minute on a pair of big left hooks from Eubank, but he took them well. Instead, Eubank’s wildness sent him down twice in the round and Groves might have buzzed him a little at the end.
I will note going into the championship rounds that Chris Eubank Jr was fighting his heart out. He was no where good enough to get through, but he was trying for sure. There was a moment in the eleventh that I thought summed up the fight well. Eubank wound up for a ridiculous hook and Groves somewhat comically just popped him with a simple jab that threw the whole thing off. I also thought Groves hurt him later in the round, but the challenger just fired away in response. Ineffectively, but he fired. He has heart if nothing else. Eubank attacked pretty much nonstop in the twelfth and won his first round in a while, but it wasn’t enough to take the fight. The last minute featured some really tremendous action with both men taking huge shots. Groves may have hurt his left arm as he stopped using it completely in the final sequences and was seen trying to flex it in the replays.
I scored the fight 117-110 for George Groves. The judges came back 117-112, 116-112, and 115-113 for the same man. He now moves on to meet the winner of the other semifinal bout next week between Callum Smith and Juergen Braehmer on June 2nd for the Muhammad Ali Trophy. That is he will provided the apparent shoulder injury allows it. He confirmed it in the post-fight interview. Eubank Jr was mostly classy post-fight and called out Caleb Truax.
