Promoter Eddie Hearn said Chris Eubank Jr’s loss to Conor Benn may have been his final fight last Saturday night. He believes that the 36-year-old Eubank Jr. (35-4, 25 KOs) may retire after losing a 12-round unanimous decision at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
Benn’s Win Comes With Asterisk
Hearn says he believes the first fight last April took a lot out of Eubank Jr., changing him for the worse. He states that Benn, 29, is getting “better.” Interestingly, Hearn fails to mention the part the double whammy of the weight stipulations played in the outcome. Benn had a handicap in place that helped him win, weakening Eubank Jr. just enough for him to secure victory. It’s not much of a victory when a handicap is required.
The Double Weight Trap
Not only was Eubank Jr. fighting one division below his regular 168-lb weight class at 160, but he also had to deal with the 10-lb contractual rehydration clause to go along with it. Those two items undoubtedly played a significant role in the outcome.
If the shoe were on the other foot and Benn had to melt down from 147 to 140 to take on Gary Antuanne Russell with a 10-lb rehydration clause added in the contract for good measure to weaken him nicely, it would be a nightmarish situation for Conor.
What If Conor Faced the Same Cut?
We’d see how much “better” Benn truly is when he’s stuck having to deal with a dual weight stipulation to weaken him. Would he be victorious against Antuanne Russell under those conditions? I’d say that’s a big no.
Benn secured his victory with the help of the weight stipulations, winning by scores of 118-109, 117-110, and 116-111.
If Hearn wouldn’t want to prove his theory on Conor Benn getting “better,” he’d have him stay at 160 to fight the actual talented fighters without a rehydration clause.
Middleweights Benn Should Fight
- Janibek Alimkhnuly
- Carlos Adames
- Yoenli Hernandez
- Erislandy Lara
It would be fun to see how much “better” Conor Benn really is if he fought the A-level middleweights rather than the career underachiever Eubank Jr.
Eubank Jr. isn’t considered one of the cutting-edge fighters at middleweight. He’s a fighter who has faced exclusively domestic and European-level opponents throughout his career. Look at Eubank Jr’s record. There are no high-level fighters he’s beaten, unless you want to call Liam Williams and Liam Smith high-level.
Hearn Pulls the Retirement Card
“I said coming into the fight that this could be his last fight tonight, but who knows the future could hold?” said promoter Eddie Hearn at the post-fight press conference about Chris Eubank Jr. after his loss to Conor Benn in London.
“The performance tonight was unbelievable. It didn’t matter if Eubank was better tonight. We were still winning the fight,” said Hearn in fine gloating form. “But that first fight, when you go through a fight like that, it can change you forever. But it didn’t change Conor Benn. It just made him better.