Nigel Benn urges son Conor to wait until fans return before making his comeback to avoid ‘cold atmosphere’
NIGEL BENN is determined son Conor will not fight behind closed doors, even if boxing is allowed to make a welcome comeback in July.
The British Boxing Board of Control are about to consult with promoters on a plan for the sport to resume.
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Among its many strict health recommendations is the insistence that everyone involved — fighters, managers, seconds and board officials — will have to be tested to ensure they are not carrying Covid-19.
Both Benn and Conor are on the mend after being laid low by the virus, so well aware of the dangers.
Conor, 23, is unbeaten after 16 contests, including 11 KO victories, and holds the WBA Continental welterweight title.
He has now not fought for seven months. But there is no doubt his all-action and heavy-punching style will be in demand as one of the major attractions to kick-start the sport.
And legend Nigel, known as the Dark Destroyer when he was a double world champion, was adamant closed-doors boxing is not the best option.
He said: “I’ve strongly advised Conor he should take no part in what will be TV-studio boxing — and he usually listens to my advice.
I believe he’ll be a world champ by the time he’s 25… he must be patient and wait until the crowds are back — however long that takes.
Nigel Benn
“I know my son and it will do him no good to fight in front of a handful of people, in what would be a very cold atmosphere.
“He has built up a good fan base who go to watch him at ringside — and he really thrives on their loud and enthusiastic support. That’s what gets his adrenaline going.
“He couldn’t possibly be in the right frame of mind — and that could mean the possibility he would lose his unbeaten record. He’s a young fella anxious to get back in action.
“I believe he’ll be a world champion by the time he’s 25. I’ve emphasised he must be patient and wait until the crowds are back — however long that takes.”
When Conor was a teenager, father and son used to spar regularly — but not any more.
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Benn explained: “We used to enjoy it, I’m afraid those days are over. He hits far too hard for me now.”
Now Benn, a born-again Christian, lives in Sydney with wife Carolyne and three of his children — but is marooned in Kent at the moment because of the lockdown.
I called him to reminisce, as it was 30 years ago last week when he knocked out Doug DeWitt in the eighth round in Atlantic City to win the WBO middleweight crown — his first world title.
He failed to realise he had reached such a significant anniversary.
It had passed him by because he “had far too many other important things on my mind”.
Nigel, 56, has suffered a series of low blows in a nightmare few months that have left him on the ropes. It started back in October, when he got a shoulder injury that put paid to his proposed controversial comeback fight against Sakio Bika.
It left him tearful — but his family were relieved and delighted.
He returned to Australia in time to be evacuated from raging bushfires that threatened to destroy his home.
The wind changed direction and the property survived unscathed.
Then in February, he got a call to tell him his eldest son Dominic, 34, needed urgent open-heart surgery.
Carolyne insisted he fly over to look after Dominic, who lives alone, when he came out of hospital.
Nigel now cooks for him. It is not widely known that, before he joined the Royal Fusiliers and became one of this country’s finest champions, he had ambitions to be a chef. Then Conor went down with the virus and, but for his extreme fitness, would certainly have ended up in hospital.
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He recovered — but inevitably his dad then caught it. And to compound Benn’s misery, Mark, one of his five brothers, died suddenly.
At first it was thought it was the result of the virus but a postmortem revealed it was down to a blood clot that went from his leg to his heart.
Nigel gave a resigned shrug and said: “It’s certainly been a terrible time for me and my family.
“At the moment I’m in no-man’s land. I desperately want to get back to Carolyne and the kids — but I’m stranded here as Australia has closed its borders. I’m booked on a flight to Sydney in June, I’ve no idea if I will be able to get on it.
“To make matters worse, I have four grandchildren here but of course I’m not allowed to see them.
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“And I dare not visit my vulnerable 82-year-old mum, either.”
It is the kind of story that puts things in perspective.
When we did eventually talk about the DeWitt battle, Nigel agreed it was one of the toughest of his career. He had to pick himself up off the canvas to batter his way to victory — like so many times in his personal life.