Former undisputed super-lightweight champion Josh Taylor has backed Conor Benn to beat Regis Prograis on April 11, telling Boxing News that his old rival has been “finished for a long time.”
Taylor defeated Prograis by majority decision in the 2019 World Boxing Super Series final, a result that informs his assessment ahead of the 150-pound catchweight bout at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The fight sits as co-main event to Tyson Fury’s comeback against Arslanbek Makhmudov, broadcast live on Netflix under the Zuffa Boxing banner.
“He goes and fights Regis Prograis who, with all due respect, I think has been finished for a long time,” Taylor said. “His last couple of performances haven’t been great at all.”
Taylor stopped short of writing Prograis off entirely, adding: “He is still a great fighter, still a world level fighter, but he is not the same Prograis that he was before.”
Prograis’ Recent Record Backs Up the Verdict
Prograis (30-3, 24 KOs), now 37, has gone 1-2 since losing his WBC super-lightweight title to Devin Haney in December 2023. A second consecutive defeat followed against Jack Catterall in October 2024. He returned to winning form against Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz in August 2025, but was rocked badly in the opening rounds by a fighter who had moved up from featherweight.
The southpaw from New Orleans had vowed to retire if he lost to Diaz. He survived, winning a unanimous decision, but the performance raised questions about his durability at this stage of his career.
‘Not the Best of Boxers’
Taylor’s prediction favours Benn, though it comes with a caveat about the 29-year-old’s technical ceiling.
“Conor Benn is not the best of boxers, he is not a great boxer,” Taylor said. “He is aggressive, he is tough and he is strong, but he is not the best of boxers.”
Benn is coming off a unanimous decision win over Chris Eubank Jr. at the same Tottenham Hotspur Stadium venue in November 2025. That fight capped a long promotional build under Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing, a partnership Benn has since ended in favour of a deal with Zuffa Boxing.
‘Bizarre Move’ for Benn
Taylor questioned the logic of Benn’s promotional switch, suggesting the move away from Matchroom made little sense beyond financial reward.
“I think that it is a bit of a strange move,” Taylor said. “Conor moved away from Matchroom because he wants to go and have massive fights and world titles and all of that.”
He called the shift “bizarre” but acknowledged the economics. “Fair play to both lads, they are getting money and they are getting paid very handsomely for it.”
According to boxing insider Dan Rafael, Benn will earn $15 million for the single fight. TKO Group Holdings COO Mark Shapiro has said the purse is covered by Saudi-backed entertainment company SELA, not by TKO out of pocket, per MMA Fighting.
Benn and Prograis meet on April 11 in the chief support to Fury vs. Makhmudov, with the bout marking Benn’s first outing under the Zuffa Boxing banner.
