Eddie Hearn was ‘100 per cent’ confident we will still see Conor Benn vs Chris Eubank Jr, but admitted it may not be on Saturday.
The British Boxing Board of Control [BBBoC] pulled the plug on the fight after it emerged Benn had returned a positive drug test in August.
He was found to have trace amounts of the female fertility drug clomifene in a Voluntary Anti-Doping Association test.
He has since passed all UK Anti-Doping tests and both fighters were happy for the bout to go ahead.
But the BBBoC prohibited the fight from taking place and said it would not sanction the bout.
Matchroom chief Hearn is exploring the options in the hope of getting the fight to take place at The O2 Arena on Saturday.
Speaking to talkSPORT, he said: “Best case scenario, everybody is happy with the situation and the fight proceeds on Saturday. Worst case scenario is a postponement and we select a new date this year.
“We will still see this fight 100 per cent. It’s bigger than ever, but we would like to see it on Saturday.”
The test was done in August but was only made public just days before the fight was due to take place, throwing up huge uncertainty and confusion as both boxers undertook their public workouts.
When asked why that was, Hearn replied: “The results are confidential between the parties. So the results were shared with Matchroom, Wasserman, Team Benn, Team Eubank and the British Boxing Board of Control.
“You get in this instance of guilty before proven you are not. We had this with Dillian Whyte where the whole world hung him out to dry and was then found not guilty.
“We have to go through this process with that failed test. There is no doping violation at the moment. We are aware of the levels, possible contamination and all this stuff.
“It is not something that is publicly reported. UKAD is publicly reported and all his UKAD tests have been negative.”
The two fighters are believed to have spoken to each other and agreed to continue, something Eubank Jr refuted.
Hearn added: “They spoke when they found out about the results of the test because Conor Benn was adamant he wanted to speak to Chris Eubank Jr.
“Conor was one of the people who wanted to implement addition testing for this fight. It is extremely frustrating and he wanted to make his point to Chris Eubank Jr.
“The conversation is nice, but the medical advice is much better.”
Hearn said he is speaking with lawyers about their options and sees no reason why Benn should not be allowed to fight, as the VADA testing is not recognised by the BBBoC.
He continued: “We were made aware a few days back about an analytical finding of a test. That information was shared with Team Benn, Team Eubank and the British Boxing Board of Control.
“Team Benn investigated the tests, the levels, the blood tests, everything with medical experts and were happy to proceed with the bout.
“The test was done by VADA, which is not acknowledged by the British Boxing Board of Control, only UKAD is, which is their testing agency, who tested Benn multiple times during this training camp and they were all negative.
“In that respect, Conor Benn is not suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control, there has been no confirmed violation but clearly he has to go a process why there were trace levels of sometime in a VADA test.
“Really from here, the British Boxing Board of Control have decided, at the moment, they don’t want to sanction the fight but haven’t suspended him.”
News Summary:
- Eddie Hearn ‘100 per cent’ Conor Benn vs Chris Eubank Jr will happen, but may not be Saturday, after failed Benn drug test as promoter draws Dillian Whyte comparisons
- Check all news and articles from the latest Boxing updates.