Out of the blue, Conor Benn is now signed to Zuffa Boxing.
Zuffa announced on Friday that the welterweight from Essex, England, second-generation British boxing royalty, had ended his contract with Matchroom Boxing.
It is reported to be a single-fight deal for a bout this spring in Great Britain, airing on Paramount+ in the U.S. and on an outlet to be determined in the UK.
Conor Benn: No Title, But Plenty of Fans
Although Benn has yet to win a championship title, he remains one of the UK’s biggest stars, in part due to being the son of former champion Nigel Benn.
The younger Benn had a blockbuster 2025 thanks to his two fights with Chris Eubank Jr., son of his father’s long-time rival, Chris Eubank Senior.
Benn agreed to move up to the middleweight division from welterweight to face Eubank Jr. Although Benn (24-1, 14 KOs) lost the first fight on April 26, he and Eubank Jr. delivered an all-action fight in front of a sold-out crowd of 67,484 people at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. It was recently selected as the Fight of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America.
In the rematch on November 15, Benn got his revenge and then some in a far more dominating win over a lackluster Eubank Jr. The rematch was his final fight on his Matchroom contract.
Eubank Jr. posted this taunt aimed at his former promoter on his X account.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>🤣🤣🤣 Edddieeee how you feeling buddy? <a href=”https://twitter.com/EddieHearn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@EddieHearn</a> <a href=”https://t.co/gSfCyjc9hI”>https://t.co/gSfCyjc9hI</a></p>— Chris Eubank Jr (@ChrisEubankJr) <a href=”https://twitter.com/ChrisEubankJr/status/2025028068180721721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>February 21, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
Eddie Hearn Reacts: “I Can’t Believe It”
In an interview with IFL TV in Great Britain, a shocked Matchroom Boxing chairman Eddie Hearn called the new painful, saying he was “pretty devastated” and misjudged Benn’s character by not pushing him to sign a new Matchroom contract.
“When I received the email from his lawyer, I texted him and said, ‘I think we should have a call, I think for everything I’ve done for you. I think you deserve, I deserve a call.’
“And he said, ‘No, man.’ I can’t believe it,” said Hearn.
Hearn said he learned the news a few days ago and has had time to digest it.
“It’s not often you get shocked, and I blame myself. I forgot it was boxing. The loyalty that we’ve shown would never, ever put us in this position.
“I backed him when he was done, out, loaned him hundreds of thousands of pounds. Some people, loyalty really matters. Other people, maybe not so.
“Maybe he’s not quite the person I thought he was. I don’t know, mate, but look, we’ll, maybe we’ll talk in the future. But what can I say? He’s just put a little bit more of a fucking rocket up my ass to say, Okay, we’ll see.”
Opponent for Conor Benn Unclear
I’m filled with excitement and hunger for what’s ahead with Zuffa Boxing,” Benn said. “I want the legacy fights, the biggest nights, the biggest stages. I fear no man at any weight, and I’m ready to give the fans the fights they’ve been calling for. I’m in my prime, and together we have bold, ambitious plans.”
“Conor Benn is an absolute beast and a superstar,” said Zuffa Boxing promoter Dana White in the issued statement.
“He shows up every time and destroys people, and now some of the best fighters in the world are calling him out. He’s ready for a world title next, and I can’t wait to see him compete in Zuffa Boxing. He’s going to be a huge addition to a growing stable of very talented boxers.”
Hearn was Benn’s promoter for his entire professional career. He stood by Benn when he was suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control for positive PED tests that cancelled his original fight date with Eubank Jr. in October 2022. Hearn has every reason to feel hurt over Benn’s disloyalty in the wake of Hearn sticking his neck out for his fighter after he was disgraced.
“First and foremost, I want to thank Eddie and the entire team at Matchroom for everything they’ve done for me over the past decade,” said Benn. “From guiding me when I first turned pro, to headlining stadium shows. They were not only with me for those highlight moments but stood shoulder to shoulder with me during the tough times.”
Will We See Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn?
Benn said while he is grateful, Zuffa Boxing’s opportunity was too good to refuse.
“I’d love Eddie to continue to be part of my team and for our partnership to evolve in this new chapter,” said Benn. It’s doubtful this will happen in the short term, with Hearn feeling burned.
The question now is who Zuffa Boxing will secure as Benn’s opponent. Among the names Benn has called out in recent months are Shakur Stevenson, Rolly Romero, Devin Haney, and Ryan Garcia.
Should Garcia win his fight on Saturday against Mario Barrios and become the new WBC World Welterweight champion in his last fight under his Golden Boy Promotions contract, in theory Garcia would be a free agent and free to sign a one-off deal with Zuffa Boxing.
More to come.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist and the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). She is the Managing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.