EDDIE HEARN has broken his silence after Chris Eubank Jr doubled down on his claim that he endangered his life after his grudge match with Conor Benn.
Eubank Jr was hospitalised with severe dehydration after his 12-round war with Benn, which he won via unanimous decision, at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last April.
Jr, the son of British boxing icon Chris Eubank, claimed his ambulance was prevented from leaving the venue by Matchroom at an explosive press conference in September to promote next weekend’s rematch.
Despite the threat of legal action, Jr doubled down on his claim with a video of an ambulance being held up at one of the stadium’s exits.
But the clip, in which someone can be heard shouting “open the f***ing door”, failed to definitively show who was responsible for the emergency vehicle being held up.
And the video shared on Eubank Jr’s socials quickly came to the attention of Hearn, who initially threatened legal action if the claim wasn’t retracted.
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In a video on Matchroom Boxing’s YouTube channel, the 46-year-old said: “I saw the video.
“And yes, he went to a gate. And this is long after the event is finished.
“And I believe the control room at Tottenham Hotspur have to approve the gates to be open, of which that’s what happened.
“What he said was Eddie Hearn and Matchroom stopped the ambulance from leaving.
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Chris Eubank Jr vs Conor Benn 2 – all the info
TIME for round two of this generation’s family feud!
Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn go punch-for-punch once again as both rivals look to make their fathers proud.
The blockbuster rematch takes place at the 62,000-seater Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday, November 15.
Eubank Jr narrowly outpointed his bitter foe after 12 brutal rounds in April to secure the bragging rights in what was certainly a Fight of the Year contender.
And the two British superstars will dance once more as Eubank Jr aims to do the double while Benn seeks revenge after suffering a first career loss.
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“And unfortunately for those who don’t quite have the intellect to deal with that can get bemused and bewildered by a little bit of clever editing.”
SunSport understands Matchroom’s lawyers are currently dealing with the matter, which Hearn is willing to drop if Jr issues a public apology.
Hearn continued: “He accused me of stopping him from getting medical attention. Which, as I’ve said before, I will not have it.
“So you can try weasel around with social media and clever editing. But the reality is; stand on what you said or apologise.
“And if you think that’s what I done, you can say it again. But you won’t hear him say it again. He’ll just say, ‘No, you know.
“What I’m actually trying to say is.’ No, no. What you said was bang out of order, it was defamation and it will be dealt with.
“But he’s stubborn and he’ll try and trick and be smart on social media.
“But it is what it is. The fight’s the fight and that’s what is important.
Stand on what you said or apologise.”
Eddie Hearn to Chris Eubank Jr
“And the other stuff will be dealt with in due course.”
A day after sharing the video, Eubank Jr posted a photo of himself looking battered and bruised in the hospital on his socials.
The 36-year-old’s face so badly swollen that he looked borderline unrecognisable.
His accompanying caption read: “I saw comments yesterday saying I’m playing the victim & looking for sympathy after showing what happened to my ambulance in April.
“If I cared about people’s sympathy, I would’ve posted this picture a long time ago
“I’m shining a light on the situation to make sure that if I end up looking like this again on Nov 15, after another dog fight, that I’m simply taken to hospital as quickly as possible… that is all.”
