Chris Eubank Jr insists it is “too little, too late” for Conor Benn to clear his name in the court of public opinion but maintains the British rivals will fight one day.
October’s bout was cancelled after trace amounts of a fertility drug were found in Benn’s urine. The outcome of the investigation into the failed tests is expected this month.
But Eubank Jr, who has moved on and is poised to fight Liam Smith on 21 January at the Manchester Arena, has hit out at his rival and his most recent claim to be innocent, urging him to apologise to fans and accept his role as the “bad guy”.
“He came out with this statement, saying his team proved he was innocent,” Eubank Jr said on Instagram. “Listen, at the end of the day, it’s been too long. After three months of radio silence, sorry, but nothing you can say or do will change the public opinion.
“It doesn’t matter how many lawyers or scientists, how many pages, essays, your people will send to the boxing board, showing you’re innocent or contamination, it’s not going to cut it. Too little too late.
“If your team had proved your innocence it would have been put out there by now, people who are innocent don’t go into hiding for three months, then start talking about, ‘thank you to my team, who supported me and stuck by me, everything will come to light’.
“It’s boring, nobody gives a s**t, an apology is all you need to give, to the fans, not even to me, I’ll be OK, the people who bought tickets, the people that travelled, the people that paid money and were let down. They deserve an apology. Not, ‘I’m going to prove my innocence after failing a drugs test’.
“You’re going to have to be the bad guy now, you’re going to have to be what I was for 10 years, you’re going to have to accept being booed into arenas, you’re going to have to accept being trolled on a daily basis. You’re going to come to terms with that and embrace it, you’re still going to make money, people will still watch you fight. But you won’t be the golden child you were built up to be, and that’s OK. Not everybody can be the good guy. I learned that very early on in my career.
“Will the fight happen at some point? It’s likely, a year, two years, 10 years from now, eventually we will fight. But the main thing is you own up, you man up and do the right thing now.”
Eubank Jr’s statement comes after Benn, the 26-year-old son of former super-middleweight world champion Nigel Benn, continued to maintain his innocence with a statement on social media: “I want to start by saying this has been a very difficult time – not just for me, but my family and my team.
“I couldn’t have got through this without the love and support of those closest to me and my supporters who have stood by me, I am forever grateful.
“My team and I have worked extremely hard over the past seven years to make me the fighter I am today, we have never cut corners or cheated the grind in any way.
“It’s been really hard for me to accept that people think that I would do what I was accused of but what I’ve come to realise is people rush to judgement, without knowing the facts, especially people in the boxing community (and, most disappointingly, even those that know me).
“Although I’ve kept away from social media, I’m well aware of those who have thrown dirt on my name. I’ll forgive but I won’t forget.
“[Trainer] Tony Sims has had a clean gym for 26 years, I respect the gym. No one is bigger than the gym! We don’t condone cheating or cutting corners.
“I’m thankful to my dad who has been with me through this whole period and I’m glad this nightmare is coming to an end for the sake of our combined mental health.
“Never did we think we’d go through something like this but they say the hardest fight is life and the adversity it brings. I want to make up for lost time and not let another moment go to waste.
“Boxing is my life. I’ve been through hardships in my career before but nothing like this, I believe in life you go through adversity of all kinds and what matters most is how you respond.
“My team have proven my innocence and the truth will soon come out. Until then, I won’t be commenting further due to confidentiality.
“I’m thankful to everyone who has supported me through this tough time… tough times don’t last, tough people do. We keep it moving and will continue to chase the end goal of being world champion – it’s a minor setback for a major comeback.
“For now, I am looking forward to sharing Christmas privately with my family and I will be back in January.
“See you all in 2023, the year I become world champion!”
