Conor Benn reveals boxing superstar he wants next if Chris Eubank Jr rematch can’t be made and issues chilling warning
CONOR BENN has revealed the opponent he’s eyeing if a rematch with Chris Eubank Jr fails to come to fruition.
The bitter rivals went to war for 12 incredible rounds at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last month in one of the best domestic dust-ups in recent memory.
Benn, 28, suffered an agonising unanimous decision defeat in the closely-contested Spurs slugfest, which the judges all scoring 116-112 in Eubank Jr’s favour.
A rematch clause was placed in the lucrative contract both men inked but Part II is by no means guaranteed as Eubank Jr had to boil himself to the brink of severe illness to make the contracted 160lbs weight – which he MISSED.
His dad Chris Snr revealed he was “touch and go” after being taken to hospital with extreme dehydration, although Jr has now said he is in “great shape” and dismissed Benn’s claim he suffered a broken jaw.
Benn isn’t putting all his eggs into the rematch basket, revealing he’ll target a showdown with boxing superstar Ryan Garcia if he can’t get his shot at revenge.
‘The Destroyer’ roared: “If it’s not Eubank next, it’s Garcia next. I’ll drop back down to 147lbs and go straight back in.
“At 147lbs, that’s where I’m the most dangerous. That’s where you see the clinical knockouts.
“The 154s, the 160s, seem to absorb the shots better.
“No doubt I had I had Eubank hurt at 160lbs four or five times in the fight.
“I just couldn’t get the finish, I just couldn’t pull the trigger. At 147lbs, it’s a different ball game.”
Eubank Jr – the son of British boxing icon Chris Eubank Sr – has become the darling of the nation following the biggest victory of his career.
But Benn – the son of Senior’s former rival Nigel Benn – couldn’t care less about the adoration his foe is receiving, saying: “He’s good at getting the sympathy vote, let him get it. Let him get it.”
Should an incredible fourth chapter of the Benn-Eubank family rivalry come to fruition, Conor is adamant he won’t leave the fight in the hands of the judges.
He said: “All I know is he got rocked four or five times by a welterweight.
“More fool me, I should’ve pulled the trigger and got the stoppage. I won’t let that happen next time.
“I’ll pull the trigger and I’ll make sure when I shoot, I won’t miss.”
Benn is itching to get back in the ring less than a week after the incredible 12-round war, insisting: “I’m ready, I’m healed and I’m recovered.
“I feel rejuvenated, I feel the energy and I feel alive. I’m ready to just go again.”
Former interim WBC lightweight champion Garcia returns to action earlier tomorrow morning against Rolly Romero in New York.
And the pair’s clash will take place in the heart of Times Square, which has had a full boxing ring erected in it.
The fight will be Garcia’s first since his majority decision victory over Devin Haney last April was overturned to a No-Contest after it emerged he failed a pre-fight drug test.
But ‘King’ insists he didn’t intentionally take the banned substance found in his system, telling SunSport in an exclusive interview: “What did he get out of that?
“People still think he cheated, so at the end of the day, I know I didn’t cheat.
“I’ll take the ban for a year and that keeps it moving fast. Everybody knows that I didn’t take it.
“I know my team, we know we didn’t take anything, so honestly it doesn’t really matter to me at the end of the day.
“People are gonna believe whatever they want to believe, they’re gonna believe I’m innocent. The large majority do believe that, so who cares?”