Chris Eubank Jr has been offered the chance to become a world champion, albeit in a weight class he might be reluctant to revisit.
The 36-year-old has not fought since his rematch with Conor Benn, which resulted in a wide unanimous decision defeat when they collided in November.
Despite winning their first encounter by unanimous decision in April 2025, Eubank seemed even more depleted the second time around, clearly struggling with the 160lb limit and 10lb rehydration clause.
A move up to 168lbs therefore seems a logical solution, even if the Brit is likely to only remain in the sport for a short while longer.
At the same time, though, Eubank could be tempted by a clash with Denzel Bentley, who was upgraded from ‘interim’ to full WBO middleweight champion earlier this week.
This was because Janibek Alimkhanuly, who failed a doping test towards the end of last year, had decided to vacate his WBO title while serving a year-long suspension with the sanctioning body.
As a result, Bentley is now due a voluntary title defence, which he hopes will be against Eubank, while No.1 contender Yoenli Hernandez is yet to be named as his mandatory challenger.
Speaking with talkSPORT, the 31-year-old highlighted Eubank as a more recognisable name than Hernandez, who would undoubtedly pose a greater threat to his championship status.
“I’d love the Chris Eubank Jr fight first. That’s a domestic dustup, [whereas] not many people know Hernandez. I wasn’t really aware of Hernandez myself until I won this [WBO] title.
“I have looked at him. He is a quality fighter – most Cubans are – but I’d like the Chris Eubank Jr fight if that’s possible. If he’s still competing at middleweight, that’s the fight I want.
“He’s someone that’s always spoken about wanting to be a world champion, and this would be his chance to become one.”
Before being upgraded to full champion, Bentley claimed his ‘interim’ title with a seventh-round stoppage over Endry Saavedra in April.
