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Josh Kelly: On Boxing Pedigree, Eubank Has Done A lot More Than Benn!
NEWS
Declan Taylor
Declan Taylor
RingMagazine.com
Josh Kelly: On Boxing Pedigree, Eubank Has Done A lot More Than Benn!
JOSH KELLY is hoping to land a crack at whoever wins the April 26 showdown between Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn - and is adamant he would have an easy night against either.

The 31-year-old boxed just once in 2024 when he outpointed late stand-in Ishmael Davis over 12 rounds on the Riyadh Season Wembley Stadium card on September 21.

As his promoter Kalle Sauerland told The Ring earlier this month, the plan is for Kelly to box three times in 2025, starting with an outing in June before further fights in September and December.

And Kelly says he will be a particularly keen observer when Eubank Jr and Benn meet at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at the top of the Ring Magazine’s inaugural event, which is being carried by DAZN PPV on April 26.

The pair will meet in a 12-round middleweight clash and, despite his lofty ranking at 154lbs, Kelly insists he is happy to head up to middleweight for an easy night’s work against whoever wins.

“Look at the styles,” Kelly told The Ring. “I’m not scared of any of them. I think I’d make Eubank look f--king silly and think I’d hurt Benn and probably knock him out if he jumps in and gets caught. I fancy myself against any of them.

“They are in the limelight because of their dads’ names which is good and it makes for a good fight. The dads have fought each other and it’s a legendary fight. But on boxing pedigree, Eubank has done a lot more than Benn.

“Benn has been calling me out for years. He is the best guy at calling people out but not fighting them. I think he has called every person out on the face of this earth but never fought any of them. He has just waited it out for this Eubank fight. He was calling me out in 2018.

“But all them names; Conor Benn, Chris Eubank, Aaron McKenna. Any of them. I don’t think any of them come close to me on my night if I’m performing.”

Another middleweight name who has been linked with a domestic clash with Kelly is Denzel Bentley, who himself is playing the waiting game as he prepares for the second world title shot of his career.

The London puncher is the No.1 contender with the WBO and therefore next in line for a rematch with Ring Magazine No.1 Janibek Alimkhanuly, who is scheduled to defend his world middleweight title against Anauel Ngamissengue in Kazakhstan on April 5.

When asked about a potential fight with Bentley, Kelly said: “I’ve heard Janibek could be moving up so maybe [me and Bentley] could be something to do with that at 160lb. It’s not my weight but give me the chance and I’m going to take it.

“I’m never scared to take a challenge on and I’d never say I’m the underdog in that one. I’ve got the tools to deal with that one at 160lbs, for sure.”

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