Quotes from Chris Eubank Sr.

Most people seem to think I am something of a character and the things that have befallen me are par for my course.

I moved to New York aged 16, and worked part-time in a Korean store in South Bronx selling groceries, bread and confectionery. I earned $10 and it was painful because I didn't want to be there. I also worked in Debenhams as a kid, and a Wimpy in Brighton when I was 20.

I'm not bankrupt of effervescence. I'm not bankrupt of craic.

I beat many good fighters and many who were better than me and the reason I beat them was because I was persistent, I was willing to go through those pain barriers.

When I was 11 my school held a sports day near Crystal Palace. We were told we were going to play a rugby match. The ball was eventually passed to me and I was obviously expected to run with it. I took one look at all these players charging towards me, placed the ball on the ground and walked off the pitch.

I am benevolent.

The reason why I'm such a successful pugilist is that no one knows my limitations better than me. I am quite good, but I am not the best in the world. But I am one of the best and I'm quite content with that.

I am a sensitive, emotionally conditioned human being, and I have suffered racist abuse.

When I say my family suffered for my anti-war protesting, one of the many fallouts was having to send my two sons to America because I couldn't keep control of them when the divorce happened... there are consequences for your actions.

To be accused of ignoring my roots is pig ignorant.

To be exceptional you have to be alone, that's the life of a warrior.

Solitude is the companion of warriors.

It's the only thing that allowed me to win so many championship fights and allowed me to put up with the bigotry of the media, the keyboard warriors, the critics. I've endured it all because, spiritually, I am buoyant, alive.

No one escapes the long arm of the law, they are a business, they are very good at what they do and eventually they will catch up with you.

Bankruptcy, divorce, these are feathers in my cap, I suppose. I have a wisdom which has been born from these things.

There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed free speech. If you speak freely, you are then deemed as I was, to be a subversive.

If you are learning how to box, any type of support will make you weak. Any type of support is counterproductive.

Boxing is the more dangerous activity from the rugby player's and the general public's point of view, but to me rugby is far more dangerous so I would prefer my sons to box. I love my children too much and do not want to watch them getting hurt. This is in no way intended as a criticism of rugby, which I consider to be a fantastic sport.

I don't drink in public. I don't swear on TV. All I want is for people to say Chris Eubank is an all-right guy.

Obsession is a synonym for magic. Magic is a synonym for genius. It's a knack. It's an aptitude.

Money's just a medium. I am extremely wealthy in all other regards.

Let me tell you, the jodhpur in the world of fashion is a formidable adversary to the trouser. It gives automatic swagger to anyone who wears them.

My father, who was illiterate, smoothed iron for Ford Dagenham and we'd get up at 5;30 A.M. to give him a jump-start. My mother was a nurse and part of the Windrush generation. Growing up in east London, we were financially poor, but rich in hope and dignity, and we were happy.

From the age of 17, I lived the life of a hermit and dedicated myself to gym life, first in the South Bronx and then back in England. I was in a bubble and I bypassed a lot of popular culture.