Promoter Eddie Hearn says Conor Benn could face Mario Barrios next for his WBC welterweight title. Benn is ranked #2 with the World Boxing Council at 147, and it makes sense for him to go in that direction to challenge Barrios for his belt. He can then transmute that title into mega-riches.
Barrios Next?
Although Hearn says he would much prefer that Benn (23-0, 14 KOs) fight middleweight Chris Eubank Jr. next, he says Barrios (29-2-1, 18 KOs) iS interested in fighting Conor because he feels it’s a winnable fight for him.
Benn, 28, said this week that he believes a fight between him and Barrios is possible for February. That suggests that he’s already decided to go in that direction rather than move up to 160 to face the 35-year-old Eubank Jr. (34-3, 25 KOs) for no belt in a one-off situation.
Hearn is obviously thinking in the short term rather than considering what Benn can do if he defeats Barrios.
Eubank Jr. is a domestic-level fighter who has only fought once for a world title during his 13-year career and was easily beaten by George Groves on February 17, 2018.
Big Money Fights
If Conor Benn can capture the WBC welterweight, he can use that belt to get a match against Manny Pacquiao, which would bring in a lot of money, and get a unification against IBF champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. In the long term, it’s smarter for Benn to go in the direction of fighting Barrios than taking on the much bigger Eubank Jr. for a domestic-level scrap.
“My conversation with Luis DeCubas right now. I said, ‘You have Conor Benn for this much, and you have Boots Ennis for this much.’ I think Barrios likes the Conor Benn fight because he thinks it’s a winnable fight. I’m not sure I agree with him, but I think it’s a really good fight,” said Eddie Hearn to Fight Hub TV about a potential next move for Conor Benn.
“For me, the financial reward of Benn-Eubank is much bigger than Benn-Barrios, but Conor, especially being out here this week, really likes the WBC world championship fight. So, we’ll have to see.
“In the air at the moment,” said Hearn when asked where does that leave the Eubank Jr. fight for Benn. “I met with Ben Shalom yesterday. We’re negotiating that fight. Whether we get there or not, we’ll have to see. Conor is either fighting Barrios or Eubank, that’s it. So, 50-50 which way it goes,” said Hearn.
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