Eddie Hearn strutted into Tuesday’s grand arrivals looking like a car salesman hyped on too much coffee, trying to pitch the fight between Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn. Yeah, he was going on and on about Conor’s odds this Saturday night at, you know, that shiny Tottenham Hotspur Stadium down in London.
(Credit where it’s due: Mark Robinson, snapping pics for Matchroom Boxing)
Hearn called Benn (23 wins, no losses, 14 brutal knockouts) something like a robot assassin — not in those exact words, obviously. Press a button and BOOM, destruction mode. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating, but the way Hearn described him made it sound pretty close. Benn’s usually a wild card, to put it mildly, and against a smart cookie like Eubank Jr. (who’s got 34 wins, 3 losses, 25 KOs), that chaos might backfire. That’s the theory, at least.
Anyway, Hearn seemed convinced Benn was gonna roll right over Eubank Jr. — with all the confidence of a guy who forgot the bigger dude’s stats, and how they might… you know, matter.
### “No Excuses” Benn
Hearn seemed to be dreaming big on the whole “programmable fighter” idea, saying to iFL TV, “If we could program Conor Benn, training camps? Who needs ’em? Just a click and boom — peak powers!” Like, imagine the options on that remote, right? Comedy gold or a promoter’s fantasy, take your pick.
But yeah, Hearn was spinning this yarn about how it could boost Benn’s game against Chris Jr., a walking, talking logic puzzle of a boxer. Might’ve sounded convincing to some.
In Hearn’s words, ‘‘Absolutely no excuses. Conor’s the sharpest he’s ever been, and I’ve got a feeling that’s enough. Conor’s not just a welterweight; he’s a BIG welterweight,” he boomed. “This is Chris Eubank Sr’s boy versus Nigel Benn’s boy, in front of, and let me double-check — 65,000 folks.” It’s apparently this once-in-a-lifetime clash. A tent circus with an excellent sideshow, too, no lie. Live it up, people; this is popcorn and soda stuff. As for the fight? Well, Hearn keeps saying it’s a “50-50” toss-up.
Boxing News 24 seemed to wonder, just like the rest of us watching from the peanut gallery: Can this super-honed Benn, promised by Hearn, really take down the seasoned Eubank Jr.? Guess Saturday night will tell us — or leave us all scratching our heads.
