Chris Eubank Jr. (35-3, 25 KO’s) and Conor Benn (23-1, 14 KO’s) are heading into their second match in a clear cash grab to piggyback off the success of their first match.
Set to headline a November 15 card at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the same venue they fought in during their first match held on April 26, there are multiple concerns regarding the upcoming event including the confusing confirmation that the event will be promoted by Sela.
According to The Ring, owned by Turki Alalshikh, Sela will become the lead promoter of the upcoming event despite not being an official boxing promotion.
Though both The Ring and Riyadh Season, which are both headed by Alalshikh, have hosted events before ― Sela largely remains an unknown quantity that has been identified as an “entertainment and hospitality” company based in Saudi Arabia. It is said to be involved in promoting the upcoming September 13 card headlined by Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford, but has thus far not shown any prominent involvement in the event, drawing questions as to what Sela’s true intentions are.
Its involvement draws many comparisons to Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) who have carved out a reputation as a promotion despite officially being presented as a management/broadcasting company that is not actually allowed to function as a promotion but has bypassed these rules by using TGB Promotions as a proxy.
The Ring and Riyadh Season have similarly used other promotions to host their shows, using a plethora of well-known and established promotions to virtually hold events that went unchallenged and unquestioned.
However, Sela draws more eyes in comparison given they have no tangible resume in hosting boxing events and have yet to showcase anything for the upcoming September 13 event. Coupled with the fact little is known about them about to begin with, their involvement seems to be a deliberate plan by Saudi Arabia to extend its influence outside of its own country. Notably, Sela is owned by the Saudi Arabia-based Public Investment Fund (PIF), best known for sponsoring the LIV Golf competition.
Pertaining to the headlining rematch between Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn, the match is set to be held at middleweight (160 lbs) despite the weight struggles that Eubank went through, which led to him being hospitalized for dehydration following his April 26 bout against Benn.
For both Eubank and Benn, the upcoming rematch further showcases a lack of ambition to pursue titles in the divisions they belong in, with Eubank ― who clearly has outgrown the 160-pound division ― having clearly been adverse to challenging any of the incumbent middleweight champions.
Deciding to move down from super middleweight (168 lbs) in 2019, Chris Eubank has spent roughly six years in a division he seems too big for without any notable attempts to challenge for any title. Given his issues with managing weight in his initial bout with Benn, it appears Eubank has all but given up on becoming a genuine world champion and has struck gold with Conor Benn who has clearly become his main source of income for the time being.
Similarly for Conor Benn, it is still unclear what his actual division is, having spent the last two fights prior to his match against Eubank fighting as a super welterweight (154 lbs). For most of his career, Benn has been known as a welterweight (147 lbs).
The first match between the two, while competitive, saw Chris Eubank Jr. decisively win the bout in the latter stage where Conor Benn found himself outclassed and outworked to lose for the first time of his career. Eubank won the April 26 match by unanimous decision (UD).
