Fiery words were exchanged at the kickoff press conference in London before the World Boxing Super Series semi-final bout between WBA super middleweight world champion George Groves (27-3, 20 KOs) and IBO beltholder Chris Eubank Jr. (26-1,20 KOs) at the Manchester Arena on February 17.

Chris Eubank Jr: “George seems to be hung up on what I’ll do. He needs to worry about himself. Thinking about me isn’t going to get him anywhere. I’m a man of my word and George, you will not see the end of the twelfth round…He doesn’t have the speed, his defense is poor and his stamina is average at best. The fact that he’s lacking in those things means he won’t be able to compete with me. I’m not a stepping stone. I’m Mount Everest and you’re not going to climb me.”

George Groves: “It’s a semifinal in a tournament I expect to win so it’s a stepping stone, another step on the way for me…Chris Eubank Jr. puts on a façade that he’s able to do everything himself, that he’s a one-man band. But it’s very difficult doing stuff on your own so we’ll see if he starts to make changes and adapt. He’ll have to. Obviously, this is his first really big fight, definitely at super middleweight, and I believe that he is going to fall short in a lot of categories.”