Chris Eubank Sr says his shock arrival before his son’s unanimous points win over Conor Benn was the “moment of a lifetime”.
The pair had supposedly been estranged for years and Eubank Sr, 58, had criticised the match-up.
He was not expected to make an appearance on Saturday, before surprising the crowd at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when he emerged from Chris Eubank Jr’s car.
Speaking on his YouTube channel on Wednesday, external, Eubank Sr was emotional as he recalled the poignant moment, which he says “moved the nation and the world”.
Eubank Sr says he did not contact his son until the eve of the fight and said he put on a “disguise” to visit him in a hotel.
“I’m welling up now,” Eubank Sr said.
“A moment of a lifetime. It looks like it has been orchestrated by a director, for the car to pull up where it did, for me to be on the left-hand side of the car.
“For me to push the door open and put one foot down and there is the world’s media. I chuckled.
“I was directed spiritually, I’m good but I’m not that good, that is why it moved the nation and the world.”
Following his thrilling points victory Eubank Jr was admitted to hospital, which is standard procedure for boxers after a gruelling bout.
The fight was set at the middleweight limit of 11st 6lb (160lbs) and Eubank Jr endured a difficult weight cut to the agreed limit but was still fined 375,000 for missing his target by a mere 0.05lb the day before the fight.
A rehydration clause also limited the 35-year-old from adding more than 10lb on the morning of the fight.
Eubank Sr says accompanying his son in the ambulance brought back memories of his ill-fated bout with Michael Watson in 1991, when his opponent suffered brain damage.
“My son junior is very proud and his face looked like a blown up football, almost twice the size,” he said.
“He will never let you see that but it brought me back all of those years to think about what Michael went through and I was feeling all of that.
“People don’t know but my son was touch-and-go and the only way we are going to know if he is going to be OK is with the CT scan.
“He suffered mostly in the hospital because of dehydration, even though the beating was severe. That is why he was in such discomfort for 24-30 hours.
“Do you know how many times I welled up? Do you know how many times I trembled? At 35 years old to be coming down to 160lb, semi-conscious and battered, just like his adversary Conor, who came into the hospital at probably two-o-clock in the morning.
“When I looked at him I did break down, he was on the bed and his legs were obtusely bent and I couldn’t see whether he was awake. As I walked closer I said ‘are you OK?’ And he said, ‘yeah I’m OK, I’m OK’.
“The fight was extraordinary, I never thought I would see this type of performance from my son. From rounds six to 12 he stayed in the pocket which is where you are standing toe to toe.
“I’m so proud of that boy of mine and I’m so proud of Conor Benn and it will echo into eternity.
“[But] I don’t want my son to go through that again. He doesn’t know his life was in the balance and neither does he care.”
