Eddie Hearn reveals rehydration stipulations remain in place for Eubank Jr - Benn rematch

Eddie Hearn has confirmed that Chris Eubank Jr is contractually obliged to adhere to the same rehydration clause as the first fight if he and Conor Benn agree to a rematch later this year.

The domestic rivals produced a fight of the year contender at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night in a showdown that bore stark similarities to the first showdown between their two fighting fathers, Chris Eubank Sr and Nigel Benn, over three decades earlier.

Eubank Jr did just enough down the home stretch to secure a unanimous points success, but there is no doubt that the British public would love to see the two run it back for a second time this summer, with speculation suggesting a September date has already been provisionally agreed.

Any notion that the fight could take place with different stipulations in place have however been played down by Matchroom's Eddie Hearn, who says the exact same agreement is in place for the proposed rematch despite Ben Shalom's claims that the clause could be removed.

"Eubank accepted those terms for the rehydration clause, and that’s the art of a contract," Hearn told Boxing News.

For me, the terms were spot-on and those terms are already agreed for the rematch - exactly the same as the first contract.

"We knew Eubank’s weight all week… He was absolutely spot-on on Saturday morning.

"On Friday he was tight at the weight - he’s always tight at the weight, but he messed up. He arrived at the official weigh-in an hour late, he could’ve made 160lbs comfortably, but they (his team) just ballsed up."

Despite Hearn's admission that an agreement is already in place for Eubank Jr v Benn 2, he remains on the fence as to whether undertaking the fight would be the most logical step for his fighter to take at this stage of his career.

"The danger was with Conor Benn, and that’s why we’ve got to think very carefully about the rematch, because I don’t want to see him in too many fights like that," he added.

"It was a brutal fight - both fighters left everything in the ring, and it will have taken an enormous amount out of them, both physically and mentally.

"Conor stepped up from 147lbs and traded blows with somebody who is a world level operator in the middleweight division, so we have to think carefully about it, and weigh this decision up with his best interests at heart."

Mark Mothershaw

• Matchroom
• BOXXER
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