Ben Shalom, promoter of Chris Eubank Junior, has said in speaking to Sky Sports that Eubank Jr has made a “hugely generous” compromise in accepting a purse split of 55%, as a deal is being worked on for Eubank to fight Conor Benn. Fans everywhere know the story of how this ‘Next Generation’ fight was all set to happen in October of 2022 before Benn’s world fell apart, and the fight did likewise as it was reported that Benn had tested positive for a banned substance.
Months and months of Benn fighting to clear his name later, the unbeaten welterweight has his license back, and the massive (in the UK) grudge match with Eubank is a thing once again. And now, with Shalom saying, “I’ve done my job, and now it’s time for them (team Benn) to be sensible,” some fans may be led to believe the fight is close to being back on.
But this is boxing, and there’s more to it than what one-half of the two rival teams have said. Benn may not agree to take 45% of the purse, or then again, maybe he will. There could also be other issues behind the scenes.
Here’s what Shalom said to Sky Sports:
“We’ve worked wonders. You ask anyone, they can even see it, this isn’t even close to a 50-50 fight, so the fact that he’s managing to compromise on that is hugely generous from him,” Shalom said. “I’ve done my job, and now it’s time for them to be sensible. The fact that they’ve already got us down to that shows how well we’ve done. If the fight doesn’t get made now, then we know what it is.”
But who is the A-side in this fight? Eubank got stopped by Liam Smith while Benn was out of action and unable to fight, and the stoppage loss, though avenged, hurts Eubank’s rep in the eyes of some folks. On the other hand, Benn needs to fight, and Eubank is his most obvious big-money foe. Or is he?
Things have become even more interesting and complicated due to what Benn’s guy, Keith Connolly, told ESPN earlier today.
This is via Mike Coppinger’s tweet:
“The Conor Benn, Chris Eubank fight doesn’t look like it’ll happen next. My plan is to talk to Eddie Hearn this week to proceed with negotiations for Conor to fight Mario Barrios next, then target a huge PPV event in America against Gervonta Davis,” Connolly said. “I think at the end of the day, there’s actually more money in the Gervonta Davis fight for Conor anyway.”
If Benn really can get himself fights with Barrios And Tank, then he is in a position to either demand significantly more than a 45% split against Eubank, or he could afford to forget Eubank altogether.
It will be very interesting to see how this all plays out.
Benn Vs. Eubank, or Benn Vs. Barrios and then, assuming Benn wins, a massive fight with Tank Davis?
