Conor Benn dealt major setback: BBBofC rejects his application to fight Chris Eubank Jr. in UK

Conor Benn’s plans on fighting Chris Eubank Jr. in the UK on February 3rd have been derailed due to the BBBofC rejecting the 27-year-old Benn’s application to the bout to take place in the country.

The BBBofC still needs the appeal to be concluded with the UKAD on Benn’s investigation due to his failed drug tests from last year. Although Eddie Hearn, the promoter for Benn (22-0, 14 KOs), is confident that the Eubank Jr-Benn fight will go ahead on February 3rd in the UK, the BBC of C could foil that plan.

Hearn can stage the celebrity-esque match between Benn the the 34-year-old Eubank Jr. outside of the UK on February 3rd, but it’s a match that won’t attract interest elsewhere, as they’re not major players in their respective weight classes.

Will the Saudis help out?

It’s unlikely the Saudis would want anything to do with this albatross-level fight between Eubank Jr. and Benn, as it wouldn’t make them look good staging a fight that couldn’t take place in the UK.

The backlash would be huge if the Saudis agreed to stage the Eubank Jr-Benn fight in their country without Benn having cleared his name after his positive drug tests. If the Saudis don’t help Hearn with this fight, it’s anyone’s guess which country wants to stage this hot potato.

“The board feels any athlete who has failed a drugs test needs to go through an investigation with the proper authorities, and that hasn’t happened,” said BBBofC general secretary Robert Smith to talkSPORT Boxing.

Hearn would probably be better off giving up on this fight because there are too many problems standing in the way of it happening. If Benn isn’t going to clear his name, he might have to fight outside of the UK his entire career, which wouldn’t be bad if he has the talent to compete with the top rungs of the 147-lb division.

It’s unclear what Benn’s true goal is for his boxing career. Does he just want to make easy coin fighting British fighters the way Eubank Jr. has done, capitalizing on his famous dad’s name to make money the way Chris has, or does he really want to accomplish something in the sport by fighting for world titles?

We already know that Eubank Jr. has shown zero interest in fighting for world titles yet has still made good money fighting lesser opposition. According to The Sun, Eubank Jr’s net worth is $6 million. His best win, one can argue, was against a washed-up 35-year-old Liam Smith.