Boxing

Conor Benn

Conor Benn

Conor Benn was one of the fastest improving boxers in Britain and was on course to follow in his father's footsteps by becoming a world champion, but a failed drug test stalled his career in the UK.

Conor Benn is a British boxer who is the son of former two-division world champion Nigel Benn.

Conor is currently undefeated with a record of 23-0 and had held the WBA continental welterweight title since 2018.

His father held the WBO middleweight championship in 1990 and went on to win the WBC version at 168 pounds between 1992 to 1996.

Benn was considered to be one of the brightest prospects in British boxing and his popularity was growing fast under the guidance of Eddie Hearn and Matchroom.

However, the catchweight bout with Chris Eubank Jr scheduled for October 2022 was cancelled after trace amounts of a fertility drug, clomiphene - which is known to elevate testosterone levels in men - were found in Benn's urine.
Benn relinquished his licence with the British Boxing Board of Control, but in February 2023 the WBC announced it was reinstating the London boxer in its rankings and stated there was "no conclusive evidence that Benn engaged in intentional or knowing ingestion of Clomiphene."
He returned to the ring in the US in September 2023 and has since won two fights to maintain his unbeaten record.
 

Early career

Benn was insistent as a young fighter that he did not want to use his family's wealth or his father's achievements in boxing to give him a head start.
In doing so, he spent time as an amateur in Australia where he learned his craft before he decided to turn professional in 2016.
Throughout his pro career, Benn has worked with Tony Sims - one of the most respected trainers in the United Kingdom.
His debut came on the undercard of Anthony Joshua's world title fight against Charles Martin at the O2 Arena. Benn got going with a flourish as he stopped Ivaylo Boyanov in the first round.
The Brit has been active over the past five years and his record is currently 18-0.
 

Being knocked down by Cedrick Paynaud and bouncing back

Benn turned pro in April 2016 and by November 2017, he had built up an unbeaten record of 10-0, with eight of his victories coming via TKO/KO.
His 11th came on the undercard of Taylor vs Jessica McCaskill at York Hall in December 2017. He fought Paynaud, who had a record of 5-4-3 from his twelve professional bouts.
The Brit was a clear favourite going in as it was considered to be another learning fight for Benn at welterweight.
Yet this proved to be a massive test for the youngster, who got dropped by the Frenchman twice in the opening round.
The Briton managed to recover and sent his opponent on the deck in rounds five and six to earn a 57-54 victory on the scorecard. After the fight, Benn insisted that he would learn from the controversial win.

"Massive learning experience. I'll come back from it and learn from it," he told Sky Sports.

"The only thing I showed in that fight is - I have heart. I'll learn from this, I'm only 20-years-old.
"I think I dealt with it alright. You cannot test heart, you've either got it, or you've not."
Benn beat Chris Truman in his next fight before demanding a rematch against Peynaud. It was scheduled for July 2018 and this time the vacant WBA Continental welterweight title was on the line.
"The Destroyer" was true to his word and put in an assured performance, hitting Peynaud to the canvas three times across the ten-round contest. It went the distance and Benn won via unanimous decision with the judges scoring it 98-90, 98-91 and 97-90 in his favour.
 

Stopping Samuel Vargas and calling out Amir Khan

Benn fought Samuel Vargas in April 2021 at the Copper Box Arena in London.
It was considered to be a big step up for Benn. His Columbian opponent previously knocked down Amir Khan in 2018 before eventually losing via unanimous decision in Birmingham.
Vargas was expected to be the toughest test of Benn's career having been in with the likes of Khan, Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Errol Spence Jr.
Benn silenced any critics by delivering a stunning 82-second stoppage of Vargas. The young fighter set the tone from the opening bell as he put his opponent on the back foot with a crisp right-left combination.
With the Columbian rocked, Benn went for the jugular as he unleashed a bombardment of power punches with Vargas on the ropes. It left referee Michael Alexander no choice but to halt the contest.

While Benn had made a statement of intent, he made an even greater impression in his post-fight interview with Sky Sports, calling out Khan, Porter and Broner:

"Give me Amir Khan. If he wants it, he can have it.
"I can deal with pressure. I can cope with it. I can live with it, no problem. I'm ready for the top dogs - Shawn Porter, Adrien Broner?
"I'm the most rapidly improved fighters globally."
 

Benn v Granados

Benn earned a hard-fought points victory over American Adrian Granados at Leeds, Headingley in September 2021.

Granados was elusive, but Benn landed the bigger shots and won 100-90, 99-91, 97-93 on the cards.
The Briton was fighting for the first time since knocking out Vargas in 80 seconds in April 2021.
The pair were originally due to meet in July but Benn tested positive for Covid two days before the fight.
 

Statement win vs Chris Algieri

Benn finished 2021 in style with an impressive dismantling of Algieri.

The American former world champion had been billed as Benn's toughest test yet, but he was blown away by Benn, who showed clear signs of improvement.
The Brit showed off some superb body shots and his left-hand jab caused Algieri issues all evening in December 2021 in Liverpool.
Benn took the centre of the ring and ended the fight at the end of the fourth with a straight left, right combination which left Algieri flat out on the canvas.
It was a heavy knockdown from Benn and his most impressive performance to date.
 

Chris Eubank Jr fight controversy

The 26-year-old was due to face Chris Eubank Jr in early October 2022 but the fight was postponed just days before after Benn returned a test for banned substance clomiphene, which elevates testosterone levels in men.
Co-promoters Matchroom and Wasserman Boxing conceded defeat in their attempts to stage the catchweight meeting at the O2 Arena in defiance of the BBBofC declaring it was "prohibited" and "not in the interests of boxing".
The bout was intended to be a continuation of the Benn v Eubank feud that saw the rivals' fathers battle it out in two ferocious contests in the early 1990s.
Benn relinquished his licence with the British Boxing Board of Control, who also upheld allegations of misconduct.
In February 2023, Benn was cleared by the WBC of a doping offense after the governing body ruled a "highly-elevated consumption of eggs" was considered a "reasonable explanation" for his adverse finding.
Despite the ruling from the WBC, Benn's case continues to be investigated by UK Anti-Doping and the British Boxing Board of Control.
Until that process is concluded, Benn would not be licensed to box in the UK, but could fight in another country under a different jurisdiction.
 

Personal life

Most of Benn's childhood was spent in Mallorca, Spain. Conor was taught by his father to support himself financially, which led to him working long days as a painter/decorator in Spain.
Conor then moved to Australia with his family and started his career as an amateur boxer, fighting on 20 occasions.
Benn is a Christian and has a tattoo that reads: "I trust in God, I trust in the process". He is married to Victoria and together they have a baby called Eli. His son was born on January 24, 2021.
 

What is Benn's worth?

Benn's performances were recently rewarded by Hearn. In June 2021, he put pen-to-paper on a new five-year deal with Matchroom Boxing. His fights are now shown exclusively on DAZN.

According to reports, his net worth is around $3m and this comes mainly from his professional bouts.

 

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