Five things we learned from Groves vs Eubank Jr

Real redemption for Groves: When George Groves finally claimed a world title at attempt number four, some regarded it as his bounce back from demoralising defeats to Carl Froch (twice) and Badou Jack. But while world champ status was certainly a monkey requiring removal from his back, Groves’ true renaissance came in the way he fought such a clever fight late on while ahead. George lost his way in those three failed world title tilts after boxing well early on, and to have not squandered the victory in the WBSS semi-final will mean as much to him as the actual win or the world title retention.

Injury drama could be a blight: Groves, however, spent the last round fighting with just one arm after a shoulder came out of the socket. He went straight to the hospital after the fight, and Barry McGuigan, father of George’s trainer Shane, confirmed that the injury is likely a serious one and the mooted date for the WBSS final, June 2, could be a tough ask. Not only that, but such an injury can be tough to fully recover from. Here’s hoping such a big night for Groves doesn’t ultimately lead to heartbreak.

READ MORE: George Groves defeats Chris Eubank Jr in World Boxing Super Series semi-final

AS IT HAPPENED: George Groves vs Chris Eubank Jr

A boxing lesson? Everyone who favoured Eubank Jr before the fight, from ringside analyst Prince Naseem Hamed to Eubank’s own father, Chris Snr, had to admit in one way or another that Groves had successfully clamped his own game-plan onto Chris for much of the 12-round fight. Just as Billy Joe Saunders had in 2014, Groves exposed several levels of naive and one-dimensional boxing from the Brighton man, who doesn’t appear to have improved at all where it matters since that maiden pro defeat.

Car crash TV: After the fight there was the opportunity to catch the tail end of the TV coverage on ITV Box Office backstage at Manchester Arena. Naseem Hamed’s debates with Duke McKenzie, and Naz’s comments and demeanour throughout the closing stages of the broadcast, were incredible. His take on the fight swayed from one stance to another with alarming frequency before he hogged the host’s traditional sign-off to send messages to his loved ones at home. The whole thing warrants re-watching, methinks. And perhaps Hamed can give boxing it’s own internet broadcast in the vein of Arsenal Fan TV…

Full marks for presentation: The World Boxing Super Series has thus far received rave reviews for providing intriguing and entertaining match-ups for major titles with hardly any of the usual promotional double-talk or attempts to bait-and-switch. And on the night in Manchester Arena, WBSS continued to impress. The entire setup was not only visually stunning but very well run. It set the course nicely for what was an engrossing card of action.