By Jim Dower: Conor Benn weighed in at 146 3/4 pounds on Friday at his weigh-in for his 10-round fight against Samuel Vargas for the WBA Continental welterweight title this Saturday night at the Copper Box Arena in London, UK.
Vargas (31-6-2, 14 KOs) weighed in slightly less at 146 1/4 lbs. Both fighters looked in tip-top shape for Saturday’s clash.
Interestingly, there was some jawing back and forth during the face-off between after the weigh-in, but it was impossible to hear what was being said over the loud background music played.
It’s unclear why the loud music was added during the weigh-in, as it made it impossible to hear anything between said. Is Matchroom Boxing going the Triller route with the music and entertainment aspect to be part of their cards moving forward? We’ll find out on Saturday.
If live musical artists are singing between each fight, one would have to assume Matchroom is going the Triller route by adopting the concert-like atmosphere for their cards.
Vargas has the edge in power and experience going for him in this fight, but the 24-year-old Benn’s youth, high work rate, conditioning, and home-country advantage could offset that.
We don’t know if Benn can withstand Vargas’s punching power, considering he’s shown chin issues in the past. Benn has never fought anyone close to possessing the same kind of power that Vargas possesses.
Also, the opposition that Benn has faced has been subpar throughout his 17-fight, five-year professional career. There’s literally no one on Benn’s resume that Vargas wouldn’t beat without any difficulty.
It’s a good move for Benn’s Matchroom boss Eddie Hearn to put him in with Vargas now because if it works out, his popularity will rise substantially overnight.
Benn can then make money without even fighting for a world title in the same way that heavyweight Dillian Whyte has. He’s been a pro for a decade and yet’s a pay-per-view fighter without ever having fought for a world title.
If Benn wins on Saturday, he soon could be fighting on Sky Box Office pay-per-view. But even if Conor loses to Vargas, his popularity will still increase as long as he goes out on his shield valiantly, battling tooth & nail to the bitter end.
If Benn is anything like his famous dad Nigel Benn, he’ll make it exciting the entire fight. That style that Nigel had is risky for Conor to use against a slugger like Vargas, but he must fight that way if he wants to become popular. Fans want to see fighters that go to war and not play it safe.
Vargas was coming off a 7th round knockout loss to the highly respected Vergil Ortiz Jr last year in July 2020. It would be a big deal if Benn can get Vargas out of there quicker than Ortiz Jr did, as that would show that he’s in the same league as him talent-wise.
