Welterweight contender Conor Benn (19-0, 12 KOs) is predicting a “masterclass” performance against 37-year-old Chris Algieri (25-3, 9 KOs) in their rescheduled 10 round headliner fight on December 11th on DAZN at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England.
Benn’s promoters are slowly grooming him for a world title shot at 147, which some boxing fans believe will eventually come against WBA champion Yordenis Ugas or whoever holds the belt by the time the World Boxing Association’s four-fighter tournament ends in early 2022.
Can Algieri prepare Benn for a world title shot?
It’s a questionable move for Benn to fight Algieri because he’s not performing at a high enough level at this late stage of his 13-year professional to prepare Conor adequately to challenge for a world title against Ugas, Eimantas Stanionis, or Radzhab Butaev.
Those are the three fighters left in the WBA’s four-man tournament, as Jamal James has been weeded out after his loss to Butaev on October 30th.
In terms of the match-up, it’s a slight down in class from Benn’s last opponent Adrian Granados in going up against Algieri, who will be turning 38 next March, and hasn’t beaten a top-tier opponent in seven years since his surprise upset of then WBO light welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov in June 2014.
👀 Huge step up for @ConorNigel as he faces former World Champ @ChrisAlgieri Dec 11 in Liverpool live on @daznboxing 🇬🇧 🇺🇸 🔥 pic.twitter.com/xzj4ANuZN7
— Eddie Hearn (@EddieHearn) November 7, 2021
Algieri is highly intelligent and an excellent talker, but he hasn’t beaten anyone of note since his win over Provodnikov.
Since that loss, Algieri has been beaten by Manny Pacquiao, Amir Khan, and Errol Spence Jr. It’s likely that Algieri would have a lot more than three defeats on his resume if he hadn’t stopped fighting quality opposition after being blown out in five rounds by Errol Spence Jr. in 2016.
Algieri does have valuable experience in the pro ranks that could potentially help Conor Benn, but unfortunately, the experience is negative with him losing to the top guys he’s fought.
Algieri’s best wins:
- Ruslan Provodnikov
- Tommy Coyle
- Erick Bone
- Emanuel Taylor
- Mike Arnaoutis
- Daniel Gonzalez
- Mikkel LesPierre
“To headline in a city like Liverpool you need to be in the ring against a world class operator,” said Benn. “Chris has done it all, a former World Champion and exactly the opponent I need to gain experience from.
“I want him deep in the trenches with me. I want to use this opportunity to display my skills and ability against a quality fighter to prepare me and take another step closer to a World Title.
December 11 with be a masterclass with me utilizing my deep bag of skills and experience,” said Benn.
If Benn really wanted to prepare himself to fight for a world title, he should have accepted the offer from the management of highly ranked welterweight contender David Avanesyan. Fighting Avanesyan would be excellent training to help get Benn ready for a world title shot against be it Ugas or whoever holds the WBA title by the time he gets his shot.
Many boxing fans believe the reason Benn isn’t taking the fight with Avanesyan is that he doesn’t believe he can win. But if Benn can’t beat Avanesyan, he has no business fighting for a world title against any of the champions because he’ll surely lose.
Conor Benn can become rich without fighting for a world title
Like Ryan Garcia, Conor Benn makes good money for his fights, despite not holding a world title. Being the son of Nigel Benn means good money for Conor, and he doesn’t need to hold a title for him to make good coin.
It might not even be worth the risk of putting Benn in with any of the champions because if he can make good money by fighting washed-up fighters like Algieri, Samuel Vargas, and Adrian Granados, a world title isn’t required.
Benn, Tommy Fury, Alen Babic, Dillian Whyte, Dereck Chisora, and Ryan Garcia are fighters that bring in good money but haven’t shown the ability to win world titles.
Ryan has made a fortune without ever winning a world title and Dillian Whyte’s net worth is reportedly $7 million. He’s never fought for a world title.