The Destroyer, 28, beat Chris Eubank Jr., 36, in their middleweight rematch to reignite his world-title ambitions, and his promoter Eddie Hearn has now said Benn will move back to the welterweight division in search of the WBC belt.
Speaking to Sky Sports, the Matchroom Boxing promoter said: “Conor is obsessed with the WBC title because he grew up with that belt on his wall in his house. His father [Nigel Benn] won that belt. In his gym he’s got a WBC belt. It’s something that’s very personal to him.”
A potential pathway for Benn involves Ryan Garcia, 27, who is likely to face WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios, 30, next.
Hearn revealed the scale of discussions already taking place.
He said: “There’s a big fight that looks like it’s going to happen between Ryan Garcia and Mario Barrios, and His Excellency [Turki Alalshikh] told me and Conor in Riyadh that he likes the idea of Ryan Garcia, if he wins that fight, versus Conor Benn on Cinco de Mayo potentially in Las Vegas.
“That would be a huge event. We’d sell that out just from Brits travelling alone.”
However, The Flash is not guaranteed to come through that fight, as Garcia lost his comeback bout to Rolando Romero, 30 earlier this year after serving a one-year ban for failing a drug test, which also saw his win over Devin Haney, 27, overturned.
But if he beats Barrios, Hearn has said a Benn–Garcia clash would be one of the biggest welterweight events of 2026.
Benn has not met the welterweight limit since 2022, before serving his own suspension for an anti-doping violation, which ended two years later.
Even so, Hearn has said The Destroyer’s composed, disciplined performance in the Eubank Jr. rematch has strengthened his case as a world-level contender.
Hearn believes the weight cut is manageable.
He said: “The plan now is to move back down to 147lbs. The science says he can do it.
“Now that process is taking place to get him down to championship weight and try and win a world championship in 2026.”
Hearn added another option could come from Shakur Stevenson, 28, the unbeaten three-weight champion who challenges Teofimo Lopez, also 28, for the WBO super-lightweight title in January 2026.
The promoter said: “Shakur has made it clear to Conor Benn that he wants to fight Teofimo and then fight Conor Benn. That’s also a fight that could happen in the UK in the summer.”
