Benn Turned Down a December Fight With Pacquiao

Conor Benn turned down a fight with Manny Pacquiao in December. He says he would still be interested in the first quarter, but nothing has been settled on weight.

Family first, then the scale

Benn told Sky Sports Boxing that the fight was presented to him for December and came too soon after making weight. He has a newborn son and wanted to spend the festive period at home. If Pacquiao wants to do it in Q1, Benn said, he is interested.

The cut to 147 pounds was hard on him, and that weighed on his choice to pass on December.

Looking back at the Ryan loss

That cut came before his recent loss to Ryan. Benn now admits that outside noise pushed him into a misjudged attempt to make the welterweight limit. "I don't know what I was thinking making 147," he said.

His point is that making a weight and performing at it are two different things. He says the fight showed it and that he paid for chasing greatness.

Benn credited Ryan for the decisive punches and took responsibility for the result. He had wanted to carry on after rising from the canvas, but he did not blame the referee for stopping it.

Welterweight is behind him

"My future's at middleweight," Benn said. He considered light middle too, but says there is nothing left in him at that weight, given how bad the cut was.

He has bulked back up to around 185 pounds and insists his welterweight days are finished. Junior middleweight is off his list as well.

The gap nobody has bridged

Pacquiao won titles in eight divisions, yet he spent his career far lighter than where Benn is settling. No catchweight has been designated to match the two.

Any deal would need real talks over the weight first.

Source: Boxing News 24