Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn proved Chris Eubank Jr.’s (35-3, 25 KO’s) viscious rant towards him and promoter Frank Warren true as he presented an untruthful version of events surrounding Conor Benn’s (23-1, 14 KO’s) failed drug tests and further downplayed Eubank’s struggles in making weight while egregiously pushing for Eubank to move down further in weight for the potential rematch between the two Brits.
With Chris Eubank Jr. and father Chris Eubank Sr. notably absent from the post-fight press conference of the April 26th fight between Eubank and Benn, due to reports of a broken jaw Eubank Jr. reportedly suffered that was later debunked, it was promoter Eddie Hearn who took the spotlight as he led the presser and argued points that very much muddled reality.
“When you know Conor Benn, you will always back him a million percent for everything he’s been through because he’s got a very clean heart and he’s a good young man,” Eddie Hearn said during the post-fight presser held at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
“So when I see him get the criticism, it kind of gives me the hump because I know he gives it 110% every day of the week. In defeat even, this kid has become a superstar tonight.“
Arguably, Benn’s own troubles are his own doing after he reportedly failed two drug tests prior to the first planned October bout against Chris Eubank Jr. in 2022. Subsequently, Benn would erase any doubts of him being innocent after switching from his stance of the banned substance of Clomiphene not entering into his system due to the consumption of eggs, to suddenly claiming he had ingested eggs which ultimately led to his failed tests.
Coupled with aggressive behavior from the onset of his failed test where Benn continuously seemed to make a mockery of his own PED-offenses by proclaiming his innocence through dubious proof while behaving antagonistically towards certain members of the media, the criticism against Benn was almost entirely self-inflicted and depicts an entirely different situation than Hearn attempted to paint.
Moreover, the exact manner in which Conor Benn was cleared by the National Anti-Doping Panel (NADP) is not steeped in uncertainty due to the entire meeting that led to his innocence having been conducted in a private meeting that did not disclose what actually led to this decision.
Though the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) and UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) backed off from continuing to hold Benn accountable, this could have been prompted by the sheer fatigue both organizations suffered from trying to hold Benn accountable. To date, it is still unsubstantiated what specific circumstances and proof Benn’s team produced that led to him being cleared by the NADP [for the second time].
With Eubank Jr. having previously referred to Eddie Hearn as a “scumbag”, the promoter would arguably continue to drive a rift between himself and Eubank as he proposed for Eubank to move down a division or two for a potential rematch with Benn while gaslighting the public into believing Benn was struggling to put on more weight:
“I think Eubank Jr. should come down a bit lower,” Hearn responded cheekily to a question from a reporter regarding Eubank Jr.’s rehydration clause.
“We knew Chris Eubank Jr.’s weight all week. I knew it at the check-weight, I knew it the day after, we knew what [weight] he woke up [to] this morning, and he was absolutely spot on this [Saturday] morning.
“Yesterday [April 25] he was tight at the weigh-in [but] he’s always tight at the weigh-in. Apart from his dad [Eubank Sr.], no one ever said do you think it’s dangerous for Conor Benn to be moving up two divisions and fighting someone the size of Eubank?“
While every fighter has some emotional and psychological struggles to deal with when moving up, Hearn’s statements confuddle the reality of the fight never having supposed to occurred in the first place given the discrepancy of experience and weight classes between the two fighters. Despite both Eubank and Benn having produced a high-quality fight together, it was nonetheless an unnecessary bout that would not have occurred if not for their own rivalry in the face of the rivalry that had ensued between their fathers.
Eddie Hearn would further reveal the stunning details surrounding the Chris Eubank Jr.’s contract after unveiling that Eubank’s contract was signed in conjunction with The Ring Boxing Magazine rather than Matchroom:
“This contract was not a contract negotiated between Matchroom and Chris Eubank Jr,” Hearn stated.
“This was a contract that was negotiated by The Ring Magazine and seller, and Chris Eubank Jr., and we negotiated our contract individually. Ben Shalom, Chris Eubank, Maz―whatever his name is― [Eubank Jr.’s manager “Napper”], they accepted those terms, and that’s the art of the contract. The plan is to abide my those terms. So, for me, those terms were spot on.“
Hearn’s statements have brought forth some stunning details regarding Eubank Jr.’s contract which put him at several disadvantages prior to his bout against Conor Benn, and further implicates The Ring in negotiating debilitating terms with Eubank Jr. that his entire team agreed to.
Further confusion has now emerged given The Ring is not an official promoter yet similar to Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) has taken on certain promotional duties, particularly the handling of at least one fighter’s contract, despite this going against the rules given their current capacity as a boxing media/broadcasting company.
Hearn maintaining that Benn would be in danger against Eubank Jr. and his preference for Benn to stay at welterweight (147 lbs), a division he has not fought in since 2022, further highlights the promoter’s attempts to intentionally or unintentionally mislead the public given Benn’s previous two fights occurred at super welterweight (154 lbs) ― making it realistically more difficult for Benn to drop down to 147 pounds after fighting Eubank Jr. at middleweight (160 lbs).