Conor Benn lost his latest fight against Chris Eubank Jr., but may be the key to a victory for one reality TV star.
Conor Benn suffered his first career defeat at the hands of Chris Eubank Jr. in their legacy-defining fight at the Tottenham Hotspur arena in April.
Benn, now 23-1, has been looking to rematch Eubank later this year, though it now seems that Eubank vs Benn 2 may not happen.
In the meantime, ‘The Destroyer’ has been helping one of his close friends get ready for a big night of his own.
Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty ImagesConor Benn helped Joey Essex prepare for boxing debut
British reality TV star, Joey Essex, will don the gloves and fight on Misfits’ upcoming card in Manchester on August 30th.
Essex is known for his starring role in ‘The Only Way is Essex’ but has also appeared on ‘Celebs Go Dating’, ‘Love Island’, and ‘Celeb SAS: Who Dares Wins’.
Unlike many of his crossover compatriots, boxing is not unfamiliar to Essex, as his uncle is none other than Tony Sims, head coach of the Matchroom boxing gym in Benfleet, and trainer of names like Craig Richards, Jimmy Sains, Joe Cordina (formerly), Demsey McKean (formerly), John Ryder (formerly) and Conor Benn, who could face Devin Haney soon.
Essex has been around boxing his whole life, but was told by his uncle that his face was too ‘pretty’ to get punched.
Essex will face Portuguese influencer Numeiro, and was asked if he’d sparred Benn ahead of the fight,
“Yeah, I did, and I’ll never do it again. I thought I was gonna end up in Whipps Cross [hospital], mate. Honestly, I was in bits. He’s the only person, really, who’s ever really hurt me. I mean, obviously, it was a p— take.”
Joey Essex will fight on the undercard of a former UFC icon
Essex’s pro debut will come on the undercard of Darren Till vs Luke Rockhold.
Till shared the octagon with names like Donald Cerrone, Tyron Woodley, Jorge Masvidal, Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis, but has since made the move to boxing, where he is 3-0.
Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images
Till defeated Anthony Taylor and Darren Stewart in his latest two bouts on KSI‘s Misfits cards. Billy Joe Saunders offered to face Till once after his scheduled opponent pulled out.
Luke Rockhold is also a former UFC fighter, who shared the ring with the likes of Michael Bisping and Paulo Costa.
Elsewhere on the card, Tony Ferguson will face Misfits’ star, Salt Papi, after Ferguson retired from MMA following an eight-fight loss streak that included five stoppage losses.
Dillon Danis will also feature on the card.