Chris Eubank Jnr asked to choose between Nick Blackwell's health and his British title in controversial Channel 4 interview
- Chris Eubank Jnr beat Nick Blackwell to win the British title on Saturday
- The fight was stopped in the 10th round on the orders of the doctor
- Blackwell suffered a bleed on his brain and is in an induced coma
- The Eubanks were affronted at questioning from a Channel 4 journalist
A Channel 4 reporter has been criticised for asking Chris Eubank Jnr to choose between the health of his beaten opponent Nick Blackwell and his newly-won British middleweight title.
Blackwell remains in hospital in an induced coma after suffering a bleed on his brain as a result of his lop-sided defeat on Saturday.
Eubank Jnr and his father, Chris Eubank Snr, held a press conference on Tuesday during which the latter confirmed he had ordered his son to refrain from targeting Blackwell's head after the eighth round.
Scroll down to watch the interview
Chris Eubank Snr and his son took part in an interview with Channel 4 reporter on Tuesday
The Eubanks were left affronted at the questioning from the channel's Matt Frei
Eubank Snr was heard telling his son to stop the fight by targeting the body and not the head
Referee Victor Loughlin eventually stopped the fight two rounds later on the order of the doctor after Blackwell's eye had swollen grotesquely.
Later on Tuesday, Channel 4's Matt Frei asked Eubank Jnr: 'If you had the choice of having Nick Blackwell in perfect health - he didn't have to be in an induced coma - or holding on to your belt, what would it be?'
The boxer replied: 'That's not a fair question, I'm not going to answer that. This is my life, I'm in there to do a job. I don't wish any harm on anybody outside the ring and I wish him a full recovery.'
Frei, 52, had earlier riled Eubank Snr when he asked: 'If it's about winning; is this advice you gave to your son giving him mixed messages; is it confusing?'
Eubank Snr replied: 'Your line of questioning is not conducive to to a good interview.'
Frei: 'Why?'
Eubank Snr: 'It just isn't; it's not going anywhere. You're asking me...'
Frei: 'What's wrong with the line of questioning?'
Eubank Snr: 'It's unfair.'
Frei: 'Why is it unfair?'
Eubank Snr: 'The objective is to score your points. If anything, this fight wasn't an exception in that I gave him this advice, it's a rule of thumb.
'If you don't need to land shots to the head, then don't. It was a command I gave him in telling him to go to the body. I walked back and left him to it and he has to make the decision.'
Eubank Jnr was asked to choose between the health of his opponent and his newly-won British title
Eubank Jnr was dominating the fight when it was stopped on the orders of the ringside doctor
Twitter was immediately awash with criticism of Frei, who is Channel 4's Europe Editor.
Bradley Rea wrote: 'Look at the last question this reporter asks about the Blackwell fight, not a clue about boxers,' while Rachel Womak posted: 'Catching up on C4+1 and the news interview with Chris Eubank was awful. Really unfair at times. Shame on you Channel 4.'
Another user, Gareth Hathway, added: 'Deeply unfair questions to Chris and Chris Jr on news just now. Gutter stuff,' and Daniel Latto wrote: 'Appalling and amateur interview by with Chris Snr and Jnr. Where do they continually wheel these amateur journalists from?'
When Eubank Jnr was in the corner after the eighth round at Wembley Arena, TV cameras caught his father saying: 'If the referee doesn't stop it, then I don't know what to tell you, but I will tell you this: one, if he doesn't stop it and we keep on beating him like this, he is getting hurt; two, if it goes to a decision, why didn't the referee stop the fight? I don't get why.
'So maybe you shouldn't leave it to the referee. So you're not going to take him out to the face – you're going to take him out to the body.'
Eubank Jnr admitted he knew his rival Blackwell was getting seriously hurt as the fight went on
Eubank Jnr confirmed he backed off after his father told him to target Blackwell's head and not his body
Blackwell was taken to hospital after collapsing and placed in an induced coma due to a bleed on the brain
The fighter, who has lost once as a professional to current world champion Billy Joe Saunders, confirmed he then backed off his hurt opponent.
He said on Tuesday: 'I'm glad the doctor stopped the fight because the referee wasn't going to. I was playing.
'I'd won the fight, so I thought, "Let's put on a little bit of a show because people are still watching". I wasn't throwing as many punches.'
His father, whose fight against Michael Watson in 1991 ended in with his opponent in a coma and requiring six brain operations, added: 'Even in sparring, I tell Junior to stay away from the head because his punching is fast, powerful and dangerous.
'So most certainly I was saying this to protect the fighter. He had the fight won. This is a dangerous sport and we are real.'
He added: 'No celebration by Team Eubank has happened and will not happen until Nick makes a full recovery, and I mean full recovery.'
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