Who is Harlem Eubank, nephew of Chris Eubank?

As family of the legendary Eubanks, Harlem Eubank (21-0, 9KOs) aims to cement his own legacy by defeating Jack Catterall (30-2, 13KOs) tonight, for the IBF Inter-Continental Welterweight title.

Born in Brighton, Sussex, Harlem Eubank is the son of professional boxer Simon Eubank, nephew of the great Chris Eubank Sr., and cousin of the high-class Chris Eubank Jr. With such serious boxing pedigree surrounding him, pressure seems to be on the younger Harlem to do similar things to his elders. His opportunity to do so presents itself in the form of Jack Catterall, a tricky operator, who needs the win just as much as himself.

How has he fared so far?

After being released by Brighton and Hove Albion at 16 years-old, Harlem’s professional football dreams were crushed. That was when the sweet science called. Beginning his training at 18, and making his debut at 23, Eubank has now strung together 21 successive victories, and 9 knockouts, meaning he is seemingly ready for the big stage.

Eubank started off his career with the regular, run-of-the-mill prospect fights. Many journey-men, combined with fighters with positive records saw him comfortably win all, except a SD win against the Frenchman, Aboubeker Bechelaghem. Although, despite the easy wins, only 3 victories came by stoppage, perhaps evident of the lacking power going forward.

These fights against more unknown names continued until his 19th scrap, in which he emphatically beat the German Timo Schwarzkopf, via two brilliant short right-hooks, to claim the WBO Global title. This stoppage rang some bells in hardcore boxing fans, as prior to the stoppage, he moved in ways reminiscent of his uncle Chris, and hit hard like his cousin (also Chris, but Jr.).

His last fight was also versus a more known name, in Tyrone McKenna, again who he dispatched well, after a brilliant 11th-round flurry. Both of his last two stoppages were his best two opponents on paper, so the fact that he put on such clinics, highlights his great skill set, and ability to knock out his foe, even if he is ‘pillow-fisted’.

What is Harlem Eubank’s fighting style?

As an orthodox fighter, Eubank doesn’t seem too much different from everyone else on paper. But, you can see that at his core, he is defensively sound, with slick footwork, combined along an outstanding ring IQ. His great counterpunching is too a reliable asset, with it potentially being the key to score the win against Jack Catterall tonight.

However, his lack of power may be seen as a weakness. He may have knocked out two of his last three opponents, though many may argue they were glass cannons, with little strength or skill to them. A good defensive fighter like “El Gato” Catterall may be able to hugely nullify this, and land tough and strong punches in return.

What can we expect against Catterall?