Chris Eubank Jr vs Conor Benn fight ‘done’ for April in London, says Turki Alalshikh | Boxing news
Chris Eubank Jr will fight Conor Benn in London, it has been confirmed.
Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, which has staged a number of high-profile events under the Riyadh Season banner, said Eubank vs Benn was “done in April, in London”.
Eubank Jr and Benn were originally scheduled to face off in October 2022, but the latter failed two drug tests.
Benn’s license was revoked by the British Boxing Control Board, but the suspensions were lifted last November after the National Anti-Doping Commission said it was “not entirely satisfied” that the 28-year-old had committed a doping offence.
Since the canceled fight more than two years ago, Eubank Jr has lost to Liam Smith, but won a rematch in 2023 and fought just once in 2024, a stoppage win over Kamil Szeremet.
Benn spent 525 days out of the ring before boxing in America, beating Mexico’s Rodolfo Orozco in September 2023 in Florida, then Peter Dobson in Las Vegas last February. He won both of those victories by unanimous decision of the judges.
As Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is the reported venue for the fight, promoter Ben Shalom said earlier Sky Sports: “It’s one of the biggest fights in British boxing, along with Fury v Joshua. I believe it will sell out any stadium in the country.”
The weight at which the pair – the sons of arch-rivals Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn – would fight was a point of contention in the fight negotiations, with Benn boxing at light heavyweight and Eubank two divisions up at middleweight. Eubank was determined to put this postponed fight at his weight class, 160 lbs, and not at the flyweight.
Just on Tuesday, Eubank Jr publicly criticized Benn and his promoter Eddie Hearn for “trying to force rehydration rehydration on me to fight.”
Benn replied, “10 pounds of rehydration because I’m already fighting a middleweight, but you want to step into the ring as a light heavyweight?”
“I’m already making excuses when I nail you to the floor.”
Negotiations about the fight dragged on. Benn said earlier Sky Sports: “In my opinion, it’s one of the greatest British domestic fights in history. I don’t think two fathers and two sons have ever fought [like this]. It is about history. It’s about legacy.”
