Football
  • Home
  • News
  • Amir Khan Backs Conor Benn To Become A World Champion “Just Like His Father”

Amir Khan backs Conor Benn to become a world champion “just like his father”

British boxing great Nigel Benn with his son Conor Benn

'King' Khan has offered his support to Conor Benn ahead of this weekend's fight against Samuel Vargas at the SSE Arena...

Amir Khan has predicted that Conor Benn can "go far" in boxing if he can defeat the "dangerous" Samuel Vargas on Saturday night.

'The Dark Destroyer' Nigel Benn was considered to be one of the great British fighters of his era. He was a two-weight champion and he won 35 of his 42 fights via TKO/KO. With Conor being Nigel's son, there was always going to be a lot of pressure on him during his own career.

But so far, he has progressed well since making his professional debut in 2016. He has had 17 fights and he has won six of them via TKO/KO.

Benn's last fight was in November 2020 against former IBO world welterweight champion Sebastien Formella. This was by far his toughest test to date but he picked up a dominant points victory.

The 24-year-old's next fight is this Saturday at the SSE Arena in London. He defends his WBA Continental welterweight title against Samuel Vargas. This bout headlines a card which also includes Savannah Marshall, Shannon Courtenay and Kash Farooq.

This bout is a huge step up for Benn as Vargas has previously fought the likes of Errol Spence and Danny Garcia.

Khan - who was knocked down by Vargas in 2018 - told Sky Sports that Benn will "have his hands full" on Saturday night:

"He can get in there and have a little tear up. He can throw a good shot as well. He's got decent power. I think it's a massive step-up for Conor Benn. I think Conor will have his hands full in that fight.
"Since obviously after he fought me, he has been in one or two difficult fights, Samuel Vargas, and he's been beat after I beat him. But I still think he's a dangerous operator.
"You have to stay focused throughout the whole fight, because this is boxing, one punch can change a fight. Samuel has that power, has decent skills, which can cause any fighter problems.
"He's a great fighter. I've seen him fight a few times. If he sticks to his game, he can be a World Champion just like his father. His father was a great champion, and to have him as a mentor is a big thing as well. I think he will go far.
"As long as you believe in yourself, you work hard, you train hard. You always wake up every morning, knowing that one day, where your end goal is. Chase your dreams, chase your goals."

Will Benn get past Vargas to elevate himself to world level?

'The Destroyer' has his most difficult fight to date on Saturday night, but he has developed a lot over the last few years.

Few would have expected him to reach world level when he made his debut, but as Khan says, he has proved himself to be capable of following in his father's footsteps.

His win over Formella was made more impressive given how comfortable he was against such a high-level opponent.
The undefeated Brit will be tested again against Vargas but you have to fancy him to overcome him to move onto bigger and better things.
Benn has a way to go to surpass his father's achievements, but he is staying humble and going about it in the right way, and you have to admire him for that.

    More Articles