Bad Blood: Saunders to out box Eubank Jr in points win

Billy Joe Saunders and Chris Eubank Jr go head-to-head in yet another domestic grudge match for British boxing on Saturday night at the ExCel London.

With the British, Commonwealth and European middleweight titles and a shot at the WBO world title on the line this bout is one of the most eagerly awaited clashes of the year with an extremely close fight predicted by everyone bar the fighters taking part.

Champion Saunders is 4/5 with Ladbrokes to defend his belts, while Eubank Jr, son of legendary super-middleweight Chris Sr, is 11/10 for the first significant win of his career.

The draw, which is a distinct possibility in such a close fight, is available at 25/1 but with plenty of markets available at Ladbrokes Oliver Yew has come up with three of his best bets for the fight.

Billy Joe Saunders – By Decision or Technical Decision @ 13/8

Chris Eubank Jr has earned rave reviews through his sparring sessions with the likes of George Groves, James DeGale and Carl Froch but so far during his 18-fight pro career he has not been tested.

Pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr believes Eubank Jr has the talent to go all the way to the top so he must have real quality but his clash with Billy Joe Saunders represents the first significant fight of his career.

Saunders, who represented Team GB at the 2008 Olympics, is a clever boxer and can use experience and slick footwork to outbox his opponent to a points win.

But with plenty of animosity between the pair Saunders must let his head rule his heart to avoid any sort of war with the powerful Eubank Jr if he wants to defend his belts.

Billy Joe Saunders – Split Decision @ 7/1

This fight is a genuine 50:50 fight with fans and pundits alike all split down the middle as to who wins!

Can Eubank Jr live up to the hype or will Saunders’ experience be too much? Whatever the outcome, it promises to be a close fight between the two unbeaten middleweights.

But with Ladbrokes News backing Saunders, it could pay dividends to side with a split decision in favour of the Hertfordshire southpaw.

Fight to go the distance @ 8/11

Saunders is not known for his one punch knockout power and while Eubank Jr has a good KO record he has never been in with anyone of the European, Commonwealth and British middleweight champion’s calibre.

If both fighters went toe-to-toe for 12 rounds then a stoppage win for either man could be possible but expect Saunders to be tactically astute and box off the back foot, meaning the fight should go the full distance.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.