- The 28-year-old has been cleared by UK Anti-Doping to fight in England again
- Conor Benn previously failed drugs tests after clomifene was found in samples
- Benn has since posted a cryptic update on social media after the latest ruling
Conor Benn is free return to a British ring after UK Anti-Doping brought an end to their two-year fight over his failed drugs tests.
UKAD had been considering their options after the independent National Anti-Doping Panel ruled earlier this month that they were ‘not comfortably satisfied’ Benn had broken any rules, despite returning two positive samples for clomifene in 2022.
Along with the British Boxing Board of Control, UKAD have now confirmed they will not exercise their right to appeal, meaning most key obstacles to Benn fighting on home shores have been cleared. There is still an option for the World Anti-Doping Agency to appeal within the next three weeks.
The saga will raise questions about the principle of strict liability around doping matters, with prominent sources in boxing also privately questioning if UKAD had the appetite to maintain such a complicated course of action.
For Benn, who has always denied wrongdoing, the immediate intention is to fight Mario Barrios, the WBC welterweight world champion, with other bouts floated against Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney and Chris Eubank Jr.
Benn’s only outings since Mail Sport revealed his positive tests in October 2022 have come in two low-profile fights in the US on foreign licences.
Conor Benn has been cleared to fight in England again by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD)
The British fighter’s future has been under a cloud of controversy since Mail Sport revealed in October 2022 that the banned substance clomifene had twice been detected in samples
Benn posted this cryptic update on his X profile in response to UKAD’s ruling on Thursday
The particulars of the NADP verdict remain vague owing to confidentiality clauses, meaning there has been no confirmation if Benn’s team provided any scientific explanation for how the banned substance entered his system.
A previous strand of Benn’s legal defence is understood to have focused heavily on the methodologies deployed by the agency who conducted his testing, the US-based Voluntary Anti-Doping Association, and whether UKAD had jurisdictional freedoms to rule on them.
