Conor Benn, one of the most controversial boxing stars, is ready to return after the end of his two-year legal fight over his failed d**g test. The Essex native faced a ban from the UK Anti-Doping Agency in March 2023 after testing positive for clomiphene, a banned substance, in the lead-up to his fight against Chris Eubank Jr. WBC cleared Benn in 2023. However, UKAD and BBBofC appealed against the NADP decision of provisionally lifting the suspension.

Finally, last month, NADP stated that UKAD had not provided enough evidence to support their claim. This led to the dismissal of all charges and the lifting of Benn’s suspension, as the 28-year-old is now targeting February 2025 as a return date to challenge Mario Barrios for his WBC welterweight title.

‘The Destroyer’ is targeting every big fight at 147 he could. However, shockingly, IBF welterweight champion Jaron Ennis is not on that list despite belonging to the same Matchroom Boxing stable. In a conversation with FightHubTv, Benn talked about the lack of charisma Boots Ennis has which makes him undesirable.

Conor Benn’s big list

The 23-0 boxer asked, “Who knows who Boots is?” stating that even after holding the belt, Boots is an unknown commodity. The son of legendary boxer Nigel Benn further clarified and remarked, “I was walking around Philly & Miami…everyone is familiar with the Benn name in the states. Ennis comes to England, no one knows who he is.”

Conor Benn made it clear that he is not questioning Boots’ capability as a boxer. Rather, he thinks of him as one of the greats and compares him to Terence Crawford. “Great fighter, you know. Second to Crawford, in my opinion, if you’re talking welterweight division. He’s that guy,” stated Conor Benn emphatically.

However, the undefeated welterweight also clarified that Jaron Ennis is not a big commodity outside of the boxing world. “If you say big names…I don’t look at him. I look at Pacquiao, Broner, Kell Brook, Khan,” remarked Benn. According to ‘The Destroyer,’ it is the personality of the fighter that gets “people invested in.” While boxers like Manny Pacquiao, Adrien Broner, Kell Brook, and Amir Khan have that personality, sadly “there ain’t much of that (with Boots).”

Conor Benn currently ranks #2 on the WBC rankings for the welterweight division and can snatch the title away from Barrios who just fought to a draw against Abel Ramos on the undercard of Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul. If Benn can dethrone Barrios, Jaron Ennis would like to face him to complete his dream of unifying all titles at 147.

Ennis must now be regretting his decision to back out of Vergil Ortiz Jr.’s fight that would have increased his stocks dramatically. However, he still has one more interesting fight to make, and this time he would not want that to pass.

Jaron Ennis’ biggest opportunity

After shunning the fight against Ortiz Jr as he did not want to move up to 154, Jaron Ennis has another fight being tailor-made for him. A few weeks ago, Teofimo Lopez challenged ‘Boots’ to a fight stating that he was ready to move up to 147. Ennis must now do everything to make sure this fight happens, as it can change the dynamics of the welterweight division.

The 33-0 boxer signed a three-match deal with Matchroom Boxing and the first two fights have been a little underwhelming. This is the last opportunity for both Jaron Ennis and Eddie Hearn to make a statement.

Considering that, this challenge by Lopez could not have come at a better time. It would not only benefit Ennis and give him a statement fight after a long time, but it could also put some much-needed fire in the welterweight division. While the negotiations of the fight are still in the initial stages, Jaron Ennis must pray to all the gods that it works out this time around. Because if this fight somehow fails to happen, it would be a huge hit on the Philadelphia native’s career.

What are your thoughts about Conor Benn’s statement? Do you think Jaron Ennis does not have enough personality? Let us know your thoughts down below.