Eubank-Benn postponement to spark legal battle between promoters and BBBofC

Conor Benn’s fight against Chris Eubank Jr on Saturday has been postponed amid a threat of legal action against the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC).

Co-promoters Matchroom and Wasserman Boxing conceded defeat in their attempts to stage the catchweight meeting at London's O2 Arena in defiance of the BBBofC declaring it was “prohibited” and “not in the interests of boxing”.

The BBBofC acted after it was revealed on Wednesday that trace amounts of fertility drug clomiphene, which elevates testosterone levels in men, had shown up in a recent test by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA).

Hearn stressed that Benn has not been suspended for the doping violation and in a statement released in conjunction with Wasserman Boxing, blamed the sport’s governing body for the postponement.

“It is undeniable that the British Boxing Board of Control’s decision to withdraw their sanctioning was procedurally flawed and without due process,” the statement read.

“That remains a legal issue between the promoters and the Board which we intend to pursue.

“However, whilst there are legal routes to facilitate the fight taking place as planned, we do not believe that it is in the fighters’ interests for those to be pursued at such a late stage, or in the wider interests of the sport.

“As promoters, we take our obligations and duties very seriously, and a full investigation will now need to take place.”

ℹ️ #EubankJrBenn is postponed pic.twitter.com/xuWwJ4vA9T

Wasserman Boxing’s Kalle Sauerland described the actions of the BBBofC as “totally inappropriate”.

Earlier in the day, Hearn used social media to rule out appointing an overseas commission to sanction the fight but retained hope that it could still be saved.

That prospect