Chris Eubank Jr is expected to return before the end of the year as he seeks to bounce back from a one-sided defeat to Conor Bennand now a former world champion who has not fought in over four years has confirmed his interest in the clash.

Hampered by the weight limit and rehydration clause, Eubank continued his family’s success over the Benns with a decision triumph over his cross-generational rival last April, replicating the efforts of his father, Eubank Sr, who trumped Nigel Benn 35 years prior.

However, in the rematch back in November, Eubank Jr looked a shadow of himself as he was comprehensively outboxed and outfought by Benn, reaching the final bell by the skin of his teeth before a lopsided verdict was formally confirmed.

Since then, Eubank Jr has shunned the idea of retirement and has instead been linked to a catchweight affair with Australia’s Michael Zerafa, who signed with Matchroom Boxing last week and announced an August appearance on the Teremoana Teremoana vs. DeAndre Savage undercard in Queensland.

Whilst that contest may be presumably planned to tee up a scrap between Eubank and Zerafa at the end of the yearformer IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook told Boxing King Media that he would be willing to come out of retirement and take on his fellow Briton, if the offer is fair.

“Absolutely, [I am retired unless the right offer comes along]. If the right offer comes, I will fight. We have got history, me and Chris Eubank Jnr.”

“The offer still stands, if we can be sensible and they can give me what I am worth, then that fight can happen. If it doesn’t, I am happy.”

Brook hasn’t fought since his stoppage win over bitter rival Amir Khan back in February 2022, after a career which saw him also share the ring with the likes of Terence Crawford, Gennady Golovkin, Errol Spence and Shawn Porter.

As for Eubank Jr, he continues to claim that he is a free agent, but Boxxer’s Ben Shalom has maintained that he has a contract in place with the polarising middleweight and that he will be promoting his next fight.

Oleksandr Usyk’s most recent performance has left fans wondering if he could be there for the taking, and now former Usyk opponent Tony Bellew has shared his thoughts on whether Moses Itauma should pursue a fight with the Ukrainian.

Usyk suffered a close shave when he was shockingly pushed to the limit by Rico Verhoeven back in Maydespite the challenger having just one prior boxing fight to his name before providing Usyk his ‘toughest fight’ to date.

Since then, 39-year-old Usyk has opted to vacate all three of his heavyweight world titles, as he begins to wind his career down, with a clash against Deontay Wilder being suggested as his farewell fight.

If Usyk wishes to leave his mark on the next generation, he could accept a showdown with Itauma, who is being tipped to be both his successor and a long-reigning heavyweight ruler.

Speaking on ‘Fight Your Corner, in partnership with Midnite’Bellew declared that Itauma, who will face Filip Hrgovic in Augustis not ready for a clash against the tactical mastermind due to the fact that he has never boxed beyond six rounds.

“Moses wouldn’t go near him at the minute. I think that it would be absolutely insane to throw Moses Itauma into Usyk after not going past six [rounds] yet.

“Would you throw a fighter like that in with someone like him [Usyk]? His game plan would be, ‘I have only got to see past six rounds with you, kid. I am going to take you to places that you have never been’.”

Bellew then went on to pump the brakes on the Itauma hype train, reminding everyone that the 21-year-old is yet to beat an elite heavyweight in his 14-fight career.

“[His] best win is Jermaine Franklin. Jermaine Franklin is known for losing.”

“That [building fighters up] is one thing that Frank [Warren] does well, nobody can knock that. He built a fighter really well, he generates the hype train to a point where there is no going back and that is where Moses is at now.”

Itauma could score a career best win when tasked with Hrgovic on Saturday, August 29, with victory over the Croatian expected to tee up either a WBA or IBF world title challenge.

Former Wincobank stablemates Johnny Nelson and ‘Prince’ Naseem Hamed have had a public spat following the latter’s comments regarding late, great trainer, Brendan Ingle, who guided both men to world honours during the 1990’s. Now, Nelson has claimed that he could ‘ruin’ Hamed, if he wished.

Hailed as one of Britain’s best ever trainers, Ingle shaped ‘Naz’ into one of the nation’s most entertaining fighters of all time but after working together for 18 years, the pair split due to financial disagreements.

Ingle passed away in 2018, without ever settling his feud with Hamed, who brought that fallout to the mainstream once again this year ahead of the release of his biopic, Giantwhich was centred around his relationship with Ingle.

Upon hearing suggestions that Ingle was ‘money obsessed’, Nelson hit out at the former featherweight ruler, only for Hamed to respond by labelling Nelson as a ‘snake’, in a talkSPORT interview.

“I always realised afterwards, when I analysed Johnny, there was only ever one snake in that gym.

“It’s unbelievable how much of an over-achiever in boxing what Johnny did because, firstly, Johnny needs to realise the truth about him and his career.

“And that is, without me coming from the same gym as him and opening the doors, I begged Frank Warren.

“Johnny Nelson was supposed to be called—he was supposed to be the entertainer. That was his ring—that was his fight name. Who did he ever entertain?”

Speaking on ‘Fight Your Corner, in partnership with Midnite’Nelson has now claimed that he could ‘ruin’ Hamed, before declaring that people in their shared hometown of Sheffield are appreciative of his efforts to defend Ingle and oppose Hamed.

“There isn’t one [a relationship with Naseem Hamed]. I saw something that I disagreed with, and because it was Naz, people let him do it. If you slagged off Cus D’amato to Mike Tyson, you wouldn’t get away with it. That’s the same with me and Brendan Ingle.

“Naz said that ‘Johnny is a snake’ – I thought, ‘do you know some of the things I could drop on you, I could ruin you!’.

“I said my piece, the way he spoke about Brendan was unforgivable.

“People in Sheffield were coming up to me in Sheffield and saying well done for sticking up for Brendan. In Sheffield, you can’t get away with that s**t.”