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Chris Eubank Jr. wants to continue boxing and hopes to aim for a return to the ring by mid-2026, promoter Ben Shalom told ESPN. Eubank Jr. suffered a unanimous points defeat to Conor Benn a fortnight ago. After the bout, he said he had gone "through hell and back" during camp with an issue but did not elaborate on what that was. Both fighters had to adhere to a 10-pound rehydration clause on fight day, meaning they could not weigh more than 170 pounds on the morning of the fight. While Eubank Jr. has fought at the middleweight 160 lb limit in the past, he made it clear he thought it was not his ideal weight. The 36-year-old was also non-committal on whether he would continue fighting. However, Shalom has said Eubank Jr. will aim to be back in the ring at some stage next year. "He's okay, he's recovering. He is obviously devastated but anyone can see that wasn't Chris Eubank Jr. in the ring," Shalom told ESPN. "He probably threw 30% of the punches. Everyone can speculate what that reason is. Christ knows what it is, we know what it is. He'll have to deal with that in due course, but he was half the man he could have been. "He does [want to continue] but he has to be fit and healthy first." Shalom also said if there was no rehydration clause and Eubank Jr. does get back to full fitness, he believes the trilogy with Benn is an option.  Benn has insisted the rivalry is done and wants to move down to welterweight (147 lbs) and challenge for world titles. However, if the third fight doesn't happen, Shalom said there are plenty of options for Eubank Jr. but they won't rush anything before the fighter is ready. "There's a lot of names out there but he's got to be fit and healthy," Shalom said. "Rather than call out fighters now once he's physically 100% then we can make that decision. I believe that will be the middle of next year."
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