Eddie Hearn has revealed why he ‘can’t accept a £1million bet presented to him by Chris Eubank Jr.
Eubank Jr and his team have been locked in a heated rivalry with Hearn and his fighter Conor Benn over an upcoming bout between the two professionals which has been years in the making.
On April 26, the two Brits will finally come to blows at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, three years after they were supposed to after Benn was suspended over an alleged use of a prohibited substance. A panel eventually ruled that it was not ‘not comfortably satisfied’ that Benn had committed the offence, which he has regularly denied doing.
Still, that hasn’t stopped Eubank Jr alleging that Benn had deliberately doped during the build-up to the fight – he infamously slapped an egg across his rival’s face during a press conference in London earlier this year.
In the fall-out of those press conferences, Hearn had challenged Eubank Jr’s promoter, Ben Shalom, to a £1million bet on whose fighter would win, with Eubank Jr himself writing on X: : ‘I accept your £1,000,000 bet on my fight against Conor Benn on April 26th. Put your money where your mouth is @EddieHearn.’
Hearn, however, speaking to IFL TV, has explained why he has had to turn down the offer for a reason out of his control.
Eddie Hearn (pictured) has revealed why he ‘can’t’ accept a £1million bet with Chris Eubank Jr
Eubank Jr (pictured) had challenged Hearn to put money on the line in his fight with Conor Benn in April
The two bitter rivals will finally go head to head in London next month in front of 70,000 fans
‘Unfortunately, anyone smart enough knows what he’s up to,’ Hearn said. ‘When I stuck it on Shalom for the bet, which I’m not saying wasn’t offer, he quickly decided to quote the regulations of the British Boxing Board of Control to say we can’t bet. We’re not allowed to bet.
‘Actually, I can’t be bothered to get it on my phone, but we all received an email from the Board recently, stating regulation 30, which is that any member, ie licence holder, cannot bet, advise anyone else to bet, permit to bet, on any event that they have any involvement with.
‘So this lot, for clicks and views and clout, have decided to put a video out where they know I can’t accept it. And the bet wasn’t even with Chris Eubnak Jr, it was with Benjamin Shalom.
‘But Eubank knows I can’t bet, that’s why it’s put out, and I would never have a bet with Chris Eubank Jr, ever, because there is a reason for that, and I only bet with certain people.
‘Unfortunately, I will lose my licence, and that’s probably what they want me to do, comment on it and say, ‘Yeah, I’ll take the bet’, then I get called and fined £100,000.’
The bout, which will take place in front of more than 70,000 fans, has been dubbed one of the biggest in British Boxing history, so it has plenty to live up to in terms of meeting fans’ expectations.
There is, though, a rematch clause, and Eubank Jr – who has been training in Umar Kamani’s invite-only gym in Dubai – speaking to Sports World, has refused to rule out the possibility of that happening.
Eubank Jr called on Hearn to ‘put your money where your mouth is’ ahead of the grudge match
The rivalry went up a notch when Eubank Jr smashed an egg across the face of Benn
Eubank Jr, who has been training in Umar Kamani’s invite-only gym in Dubai, has also refused to rule out the possibility of a rematch
‘There’s a rematch clause, so it’s possible,’ he said. But my focus is solely on the task at hand – making this fight as memorable as the original Eubank–Benn showdown.’
‘It’s the biggest fight of my career — walking into Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in front of 70,000 people is unprecedented for a British fighter. I feel a duty to the sport, my father, and myself to win decisively.’
