Boxing’s latest crisis moved haphazardly and belatedly to a minimum of common sense on Thursday afternoon when promoter Eddie Hearn finally admitted that Conor Benn’s fight against Chris Eubank Jr would be postponed.
Having sought to overturn a decision by the British Boxing Board of Control that the bout in London on Saturday is “banned” after Benn tested positive for clomiphene, Hearn’s company Matchroom confirmed the bout was off .
“After discussions with various parties, we have made the decision to formally postpone the bout between Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn,” Matchroom and Wasserman Boxing said in a joint statement. “It is undeniable that the British Boxing Board of Control’s decision to withdraw its sanction was procedurally flawed and without due process. This remains a legal matter between the promoters and the Board which we intend to deal with.
“However, while there are legal avenues to facilitate the fight taking place as planned, we do not believe it is in the interests of the fighters to be prosecuted at such a late stage, or in the wider interests of sport. As promoters, we take our obligations and duties very seriously, and a full investigation will now need to be carried out. We will not be commenting further at this time and news of refunds to ticket holders will follow.”
Benn had failed a drugs test two weeks ago by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency, but Hearn initially refused to accept defeat. He launched a vigorous legal challenge to the board’s decision despite the fact that Benn, whom he promotes, was found to have traces of the fertility drug, which can significantly increase testosterone levels in his system. Clomiphene is banned by Vada and the World Anti-Doping Agency.
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The British governing body had released a brief statement on Wednesday afternoon in which they stressed that the fight could not continue “as it is not in the interests of boxing”. Benn argued he was “a clean athlete” and he and Eubank Jr indicated they were ready to fight on Saturday.
Hearn and Benn’s defense centered on the claim that their B sample had yet to be tested, had been clear in all UK anti-doping tests and had not been suspended by the Board of Control.
“Conor was caught using an illegal substance so the fight is over. I can’t believe it,” Eubank wrote on Twitter. “I really apologize to the fans and everyone who bought tickets, travel and booked hotels, this shouldn’t happen. He’s run away from school…for now.”
At least there is some relief in the postponement, but the real damage done to boxing’s already tattered reputation will become more apparent in the coming days and weeks.