Conor Benn has opened up on the fights he had with his father.
Benn, 28, faces Chris Eubank Jr in the biggest fight of his career to date on April 26 in front of an expected sold-out crowd at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
The bout has leant heavily into the rich history involved with the pair’s names, as it comes 35 years after their respective boxing legend fathers traded leather in the ring.
Benn, unlike his opponent Eubank Jr, 35 – whose father labelled him a ‘disgrace’ in a scathing attack last week – will have his dad, Nigel, right by his side.
The undefeated 23-0 boxer shares a complex bond with Nigel that can only really be explained through a plethora of anecdotes that have ultimately carved the path both men currently find themselves on.
In an interview with The Times, Benn detailed the ‘brutality’ involved with his fights with Nigel during his teenage years.
Shortly after the Benns had packed up their bags and moved to Australia together, Conor was left angered at the sudden culture shock.
So, at 16 years old, the young man challenged his legendary father to a scrap to let off some steam.
“I had a boot on because I damaged my Achilles, so I said to him, ‘Let’s just use the jab,’ Nigel said.
“He said, ‘No, I’m going to throw the right hand’. In the heat of the moment, I chipped his tooth. There was blood everywhere.”
Not long after, Conor wanted another go at his father after getting arrested when he was 18 with an amateur record of 20-2.
Although Nigel offered nothing but love and support to his son following the arrest, boxing seemed to be the one thing that brought both men closer.
“It was only me and him in the gym and we just knew we were going to have a spar,” Nigel added.
“You’ve got to understand, I was looking to absolutely knock him spark out, and he was thinking the same.
“We were throwing punches and didn’t care where they came from as long as they connected.”
Benn said: “You can’t understand the full brutality of it.
“There were no head guards, nothing. It was emotional because that was the last time I spent with my dad.
“We thought it was best that I leave Australia because of the trouble I was in.
“I flew to England on my own the next day and tried to take boxing more seriously. I went and stayed with Ricky Hatton for four months.”
Benn then opened up on the elephant in the room: when he failed two pre-fight drug tests for the banned substance clomiphene before his original scheduled bout with Eubank Jr in 2022.
He had become a recognized prospect in the welterweight division and returned the positive samples seven and nine months after he clocked former world champion Chris Algieri with a right hand to the chin in December 2021.
After battling with the UK Anti-Doping (Ukad) and the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) for two years, Benn had his provisional suspension lifted in November 2024 and was free to return to the ring in Britain as UKAD failed to prove that the boxer had committed a doping offence.
Although the London man is thankful to be competing again, he later added how the entire scandal made him contemplate his life.
“When you get to the stage you can’t even look at yourself in the mirror because you feel ashamed, it’s as bad as it gets,” Benn said.
“I genuinely didn’t know if I was going to make it through the day. A day was for ever, every day.
“I used to have nightmares and wake up in a puddle of sweat and think it was a dream, but it was real.
“I’ve struggled with the fact there’ll always be that cloud of, ‘Did he or did he not?’
“It was hard to accept that people will never 100 per cent believe you, but I ain’t done it and I’ve spent over a million quid proving it, so who cares? Say what you want.”
‘Say what you want’ seems to be the general consensus from both Benn and Eubank Jr and their respective teams ahead of their fight.
Eubank Jr fought just once last yer, stopping Kamil Szeremeta in Saudi Arabia after avenging his first defeat since losing to George Groves in 2018 by defeating Liam Smith in their rematch.
Benn has predicted that he will have Eubank Jr out ‘inside four rounds.’
