Eddie Hearn promoted fighter Conor Benn is now #2 WBA and #2 WBC at welterweight and is ready to fight for a world title against one of the champions.
Hearn should be happy to see Benn rated so highly by those two sanctioning bodies without having to face one of the talented contenders to get that spot. Benn is 28, and he has never beaten a true top-15 contender during his career. His best wins were against shop-hungry older fighters Chris Algieri and Chris Van Heerden.
It almost seems unfair that Benn jumped to the top of the 147-lb rankings with the WBA and WBC after beating several lower-level fighters.
Conor Benn’s recent victories
– Peter Dobson
– Rodolfo Orozco
– Chris Van Heerde
It’s unfair to the fans if Benn is thrown in with one of the champions at 147 and exposed as a hype job, which is how many of them view him.
To beat those fighters, Conor Benn isn’t preparing to compete against any of the welterweight champions because those aren’t world-class guys. Unless Hearn is just focusing on a big cash fight for Benn, he needs to build him up properly by matching him up against fighters like Alexis Rocha, Shakhram Giyasov, Derriek Cuevas and Egidijus Kavaliauskas.
Hearn hasn’t told Benn his big plan to fight at welterweight, but it’s reasonable to assume he’ll keep him far away from IBF champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. It would not be a competitive battle. Benn would be completely overmatched. Eddie would like to have a fight between Benn and middleweight Chris Eubank Jr as it would be a big money clash in the UK.
When Hearn does choose to match Benn against one of the champions at 147, the obvious choice would be WBC belt holder Mario Barrios. American fans will be more interested in seeing a fight between Benn and Barrios than they would be if Conor challenged WBA champion Eimantas Stanionis.
The British fans are easy to please as they won’t care which of the two champions Conor Benn challenged. They just want to see Benn fight for a world title, even though he hasn’t beaten anyone to deserve the opportunity.
Last updated on 10/05/2024
