Born rivals Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn will finally lock horns Saturday afternoon at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London to complete a rivalry that dates back more than 30 years.
It all began with their fathers, Chris Eubank Sr. and Nigel Benn, who had two blockbuster all-British world title fights in the 1990s. In 1990, Eubank Sr. stopped Benn to win the WBO middleweight title in a fight still widely considered to be one of the best in British boxing history. Three years later, 16.5 million people in Britain watched the pair fight to a draw at Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United.
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There were talks for a trilogy bout several times in the mid-’90s, but the fight never materialized, and the third bout joined Lennox Lewis vs. Riddick Bowe and Mike Tyson vs. George Foreman on a list of fights everybody wanted to see but didn’t.
That was until Conor joined Eubank Jr. in the pro ranks in 2016, and all of a sudden fight fans had a different Eubank vs. Benn rivalry to sink their teeth into.
Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn (right) face off during a news conference in London. (Photo by Mark Robinson/Getty Images)
(Mark Robinson via Getty Images)
However, Benn entered the pro game as a welterweight, while Eubank was competing at middleweight and super middleweight. And if that wasn’t enough of an obstacle to overcome, it didn’t help that Benn was very raw and mediocre in his early pro fights. Benn was knocked down twice against French journeyman Cedrick Peynaud in 2017, but won a contentious decision in a six-round contest.
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Nostalgic fans hoping to see another installment of Eubank vs. Benn had little reason to get their hopes up, as Eubank Jr. and Conor seemed miles apart — not only in weight but in skill.
But then, in an empty OVO Arena in Wembley in October 2020, Conor made the biggest step of his career against Germany’s Sebastian Formella, who had extended Shawn Porter the 12-round distance just three months prior. Benn impressed against Formella, showing marked improvements and clear potential.
Benn followed that up with wins over Samuel Vargas and Adrian Granados, but it was his brutal fourth-round KO of Chris Algieri in December 2021 that really had British fans excited about the fighter who was then tipped to be the next big star in British boxing.
And it was on that night in Liverpool when Kalle Sauerland, the promoter of Eubank Jr. at the time, foretold the second-generation clash. The suggestion was met with comments insinuating Sauerland had been under the influence. It’s fair to say it was not taken particularly seriously.
Tony Sims, Benn’s trainer, was seeking the advice of people in the boxing industry in 2022 about Benn’s chances in a potential Eubank Jr. matchup. In boxing, a lot of what you hear turns out to be false. Just this week, reports emerged about Shakur Stevenson leaving Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing — rumors Hearn has since refuted.
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Upon hearing about the possibility of Eubank Jr. vs. Benn, many were puzzled at why that would even be considered due to the clear size difference. But the rumors intensified, and before long, it was the talk of the British boxing industry. And finally, on Aug. 9, 2022, an announcement was made for the mega-fight, originally set for Oct. 8 at London’s O2 Arena.
Anyone who was skeptical about how big the fight would be only had to turn on mainstream UK TV channels to see the fight all over the networks.
Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn, who promoted multiple Saul “Canelo” Alvarez fights and the entirety of Anthony Joshua’s career, declared Eubank Jr. vs. Benn was in fact the biggest fight he had ever promoted.
It was eagerly anticipated. Regardless of what anyone thought of the size difference, they would be tuning in on the night.
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But on the Wednesday of fight week, it all came crashing down. The Daily Mail broke the news, which all parties involved had known for several weeks, that Benn had failed an anti-doping test for the banned substance clomiphene. Two hours after the story broke, the British Boxing Board of Control released a statement prohibiting the bout from taking place.
Court injunctions and alternative sanctioning bodies were explored by the promoters, but after a tremendous amount of backlash over the failed tests, the fight was inevitably canceled on Oct. 6, 2022.
Benn, who had insisted he was innocent of intentional doping, was provisionally suspended by UK Anti-Doping and the British Boxing Board of Control in March 2023. Benn’s suspension was lifted for the first time in July of that year, reportedly due to a jurisdiction issue over the failed tests, with UKAD’s ability to rule over samples collected by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association drawn into question.
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Benn managed two fights in the United States against Rodolfo Orozco and Peter Dobson — as the British Boxing Board of Control refused to sanction him — until the British fighter was once again banned after UKAD and the British Boxing Board of Control won their appeal of Benn’s suspension in May 2024.
Benn was fully cleared after a November 2024 decision by the National Anti-Doping Panel to lift Benn’s doping suspension following a hearing into the failed tests, which UKAD and the British Boxing Board of Control chose not to appeal.
Multiple attempts were made to stage the bout in the two years between the failed test and Benn’s full clearance.
On Jan. 23, 2025, Turki Alalshikh confirmed Eubank Jr. vs. Benn would finally take place April 26. And now we are just two days out from the biggest non-heavyweight fight in British boxing since the Carl Froch vs. George Groves rematch in 2014.
It’s a story of history, rivalry, family, and scandals — it almost belongs in a soap opera.
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