Former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellew thinks Benn will win by knockout in the first five rounds. He believes Benn's aggressive style will be too much for Eubank Jr to handle early on.
Bellew told an interviewer:
"I think it's a fight of two halves. My heart always says Conor, I love the kid, he's a good kid with a good heart. But if this fight goes past six rounds is a hard night's work. I should say eight rounds, cause Conor is extremely fit. It's just when it gets to the stage that weight and size is a factor it shows."
Benn is moving up two weight classes for this fight, which could be tough. Eubank Jr has said he'll retire if he loses. Bellew thinks Benn needs to win early before Eubank's size becomes an advantage.
"But I think Chris Eubank is a terrible boxer, he's a better fighter than boxer. I'm saying Conor Benn in the first five rounds. I think he'll catch him and nail him and jump all over him."
Bellew praised Benn's fitness but warned that fatigue could be dangerous against a bigger opponent:
"If [Benn] feels any kind of exhaustion, that last thing you want to do is be in with a bigger man. It's two fights in one, first six Conor will be so ferocious, so brutal, so vicious, I think he gets the job done."
The former champion thinks Eubank Jr overestimates his boxing skills:
"If he doesn't get the job done by round six, that's why weight divisions exist. Benn is a far better fighter than Eubank is a boxer. And that's the problem he's having, he's got in his mind he's a masterful boxer, no you're not."
The fight was rescheduled after the 2022 cancellation. Now fans will get to see if Bellew's prediction comes true or if Eubank Jr can use his size to his advantage.