FOLLOWING the announcement that three world bantamweight champions will be entering season two of the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS), the possibility that Prince Patel, the reigning Universal Boxing Organization (UBO) intercontinental bantamweight champion, might help complete the line-up is going to blow the minds of even those tolerant of boxing’s peculiar ways.

To start, an introduction: Prince Patel began his career fighting in Britain (where he’s still based) and p*ssing a lot of people off, before uprooting to Hungary, which is where he has mostly been boxing since 2017. There have been cameos in Poland, Latvia and the Czech Republic, but it’s predominantly Hungary where Patel can be seen – or not seen – bashing up ill-equipped opponents about whom little is known.

In fairness, he’s beating these opponents, substandard though they may be, with ease, getting the job done quickly, and has also been extremely active of late. In fact, just five months into 2018, Patel managed to box a whopping eight times, a feat unheard of in this day and age. (This activity rate speaks more to the level of opposition than Patel’s hunger, of course, but it’s kind of impressive all the same.)

Whether momentum and some dodgy Hungarian belt is enough to earn Patel, 13-0-1 (10), a spot in the World Boxing Super Series remains to be seen. But the man himself, no stranger to stirring things up, is apparently hopeful.

In all seriousness, Patel simply being in the same room as the likes of Ryan Burnett, Zolani Tete and Emmanuel Rodriguez would be ill-advised; sat alongside them at a press conference would seem wrong. But the idea of him actually fighting any of these champions – throwing punches, receiving punches – is not only terrifying – for him, for anyone with even a shred of compassion – but extremely dangerous.

He’s a polarising character. I get that. His personality and trash talk might help sell the odd fight (a single quarter-final, in this case) in a bantamweight tournament short on spice. But that is absolutely no reason for Prince Patel, a 24-year-old still making his way in the sport, and making his name in Hungary, to be entered as one of the eight so-called best bantamweights in the world.

Boxing - Prince Patel v Brett Fidoe - York Hall, Bethnal Green - 17/7/15 Prince Patel celebrates his win Mandatory Credit: Action Images / Matthew Childs EDITORIAL USE ONLY.

We’re all waiting to discover Chris Eubank Jr’s next move following his February defeat to George Groves in February. There’s a chance he’s in line to replace Groves should the Londoner’s faulty shoulder prevent him fulfilling his World Boxing Super Series final obligations against Callum Smith this summer. There’s also a chance Groves will be perfectly fine, fit to face Smith at London’s O2 Arena, and that Eubank Jr will be left scratching around for alternatives.

Who knows? All we know at this stage is Eubank Jr recently bought a new property – presumably paid for by the windfall he received in defeat to Groves – and has no qualms about showing it off on social media. There have been pictures. There have been videos. His last video, posted to Twitter yesterday, even came with a challenge.

In the video, Eubank Jr challenged would-be burglars to ghost the nine CCTV cameras dotted around his property and then “Spiderman” their way up his 20-foot wall to then break through his rarely-open window and get past the home security system and alarms and, finally, Chris Eubank Jr himself.

On paper, it’s a hell of a challenge. Then again, they said the same about ‘NextGen’ the night he promised to overwhelm and obliterate George Groves in Manchester. They also said similar the night he promised to do run through Billy Joe Saunders back in 2014.

Alas, where there’s a will – and a dependable, consistent jab and some semblance of lateral movement – there’s a way.

George Groves vs Chris Eubank Jr ringwalk time