Conor Benn got some revenge against rival Chris Eubank Jr, dominating their rematch today inside the heavy atmosphere of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, seven months after Eubank Jr beat the determined Benn at the same venue.
Benn put Eubank Jr down twice in the 12th round but couldn’t quite get the stoppage, though not for lack of effort, and he’d dominated the entire fight, anyway.
The official scores for the fight were . Bad Left Hook’s two unofficial scorecards were both 119-107 for Benn.
Eubank Jr (35-4, 25 KO) looked weight-drained and physically weak from the opening bell, as once again cutting down to make the 160 lb limit looked like it was one gamble too many on that, but being fair to him, Eubank Jr didn’t make excuses about his weight after the fight or anything, and the two rivals shared quite a bit of respect.
Benn says he’s now looking to go all the way back down to welterweight and possibly challenge Mario Barrios for the WBC title. It should be said that Benn hasn’t actually made the welterweight limit in what will be four years next April. He’s not really a middleweight, but he might also not be a welterweight anymore. We’ll have to find out.
Benn also said he felt this was the end of the long-running story between the Benn and Eubank boxing families, while Eubank Jr was less firm on that, suggesting the door will potentially be open to a third fight.
Conor Benn after the fight:
“It’s been some journey, and I feel like this is the end of the Benn-Eubank saga. Done and finished, it’s over. I know Chris has twins coming and I’ve got my boy, but this ends here.”
“Everyone said I can’t box, put that in your pipe and smoke it, how about that?”
“This wouldn’t have been what it was without Chris and our dads. This is generational, this has never been done before in history. Credit to Chris, that’s all I’ve got to say. Thank you for sharing the ring with me. Not bad for two silver spoon kids, hey?”
“I fancy (Mario) Barrios for the WBC (welterweight) title. Ryan Garcia, Rolly Romero, Devin Haney — all of them Yanks can get it, any day of the week and twice on Sundays.”
Chris Eubank Jr after the fight:
“I’ve been through hell and back to get to this night, and it is what it is. I tried my best, and listen, the kid fought hard, he fought tough. He’s got power, this kid. He was bigger than me on the scales. I don’t know how you did it! But listen, we put on a show, and yeah, Conor Benn was the best man tonight, all the best to him.”
“It’s 1-1. I’ve got to go away and deal with some of the things I’ve been dealing with over the last couple of months, and who knows? Maybe we’ll see something new with me and him, maybe we won’t. But for right now, it’s all about this man, it’s (Conor’s) night.”
