Benn made Eubank Jr look ready to hang up his gloves

The last fight of boxing's greatest family rivalry finished for good late on Saturday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

- STEVE BUNCE

The 35-year boxing war between the Eubank and Benn clans was completed against an odd backdrop of boos and vicious punching.

Chris Eubank Jr twice had to climb up from the bloodstained canvas in the 12th and last round against Conor Benn to salvage pride for his family name, and hear the final bell. A round earlier, some in the crowd of 60,000 had booed the fight, unhappy at the level of skill and lack of slugging.

At the closing bell, Benn roared and Eubank Jr retreated with head low to his corner; it was the fourth fight between the families, the first Benn win, the 45th round of a series of fights that continually set the agenda for raw excitement, drama, bravery and suffering. This instalment was all about the noble art, the skill, the ring intelligence - Benn was too smart and it looked like Eubank Jr became an old man overnight. If that seems harsh, I apologise, but it happens to men of 36 in the 15th year of extraordinary careers. It also happens to boxers with a lot of outside pressure.

They were pulled together for one last time in the ring, under a sky threatening thunder, when Michael Buffer officially delivered what should be the last word on the rivalry: Benn was a clear, clear winner. There is no pity in a boxing ring and Eubank Jr took the family loss with a stoic smile.