Personally, I maintain enmity purely off of Fast/Flat and Flash. I save provoke exclusively for Animal Instinct. If you're good, you'll get back flashing red, and if you're really good, you can Stun Eye of the Beholder with Shield Bash which will likely be his next move after Animal Instinct.

A word of caution though: While he favors Eye of the Beholder after Animal Instinct, it is entirely possible for him to use 100 Tonz Swing instead, at which point you either need to have stunned him with Shield Bash, eat the attack with Aegis Boon or Sentinel, or run like hell.