Conor Benn has doubled down on his defence in his ongoing doping drama, claiming that a testosterone booster was never in his system despite two tests saying the contrary.
His career has been in limbo since October when news of a failed test for Clomiphene broke. He later revealed it was the second time he had tested positive for the banned substance that year.
The undefeated 26-year-old has subsequently been cleared in one investigation into his first failed test. The WBC concluded that they could find no evidence of ‘intentional ingestion’ – a verdict Benn feels doesn’t go far enough.
He branded the saga ‘a witch hunt’ in an exclusive interview with Piers Morgan, and stood strong on his views that the banned substance was never in his system at all.
“I don’t accept it was in my body. Not at all. Based on independent scientists looking at the reports, based on my own scientists looking at the reports, and what we found.”
“[People who cheat in sport] should be banned for life, especially in a contact sport. Yeah, banned for life. There’s no room for it. There’s been a fighter today who’s just had a brain haemorrhage. I know first hand the damage it does from my dad with Gerald McClellan.”
He didn’t explicitly confirm he would be taking legal action against the testing agency or lab, but suggested they were ‘manufacturing, manipulating and concealing evidence’ – although he did stress it could be an error rather than deliberate.
On the British Boxing Board of Control’s investigation – one which many fans believe holds more weight than the WBC’s – Benn has little interest in cooperating. In fact, he confirmed he’d be suing them for full loss of earnings and damaged reputation.
“The board ain’t gonna stop me from fighting. They can’t stop me from fighting. In this country – that’s fine, so be it. They filed seven misconduct charges against me. One of them was cause we wanted the fight to go ahead.
The second one was because we didn’t tell Eubank immediately. And on the Monday they said ‘we’re upholding all charges.’ I thought ‘you lot can do one – you think I’m gonna sit here and take this?'”
Benn said that his pride is stopping him from providing the evidence to the BBBofC, and he wouldn’t fight in his home country for the foreseeable because the ongoing legal case.
Morgan urged him to reconsider, joining many fans in the view that if he’s so certain of innocence then there’s nothing to fear.
"Listen – you sound like you have a welter of information but I cannot for the life of me understand why you wouldn't give it to the governing body."
Piers Morgan asks Conor Benn why he won't clear his name.
@piersmorgan | @ConorNigel | @TalkTV | #PMUpic.twitter.com/jjrKgdMEhE— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) March 6, 2023
Elsewhere in the interview, the fighter told of the despair and depression he had suffered throughout the ordeal, as well as revealing violent and racist abuse targetting his family.
"I was in a bad way, I was sobbing most nights."
Conor Benn tells Piers Morgan his failed drugs test affected his mental health so badly he questioned his faith.
@ConorNigel | @piersmorgan | @TalkTV | #PMUpic.twitter.com/wXQ4ubYKLL— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) March 6, 2023
Now cleared by the WBC to compete in their rankings, Benn is expected to ignore the British Board’s attempted intervention and seek a license elsewhere to make a ring return this summer – potentially against Manny Pacquiao. He claimed to want to be put in the ring with the very best to prove he was a clean athlete.