Peter Dobson didn’t say anything to Conor Benn after they made weight Friday afternoon in Las Vegas.
After talking trash throughout the buildup toward their junior middleweight match, Dobson simply stared into Benn’s eyes as they faced off for the final time before their fight Saturday. Benn didn’t say anything, either, as he too looked with disdain at his upcoming opponent.
The shorter Benn weighed 150.6 pounds, a little below the contracted catch weight of 151 pounds, when he got on the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s scale. Dobson officially weighed in at 150.6 pounds as well.
Benn, 27, and Dobson, 33, are set to meet in a 12-round main event DAZN will stream Saturday from The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
DraftKings sportsbook has established England’s Benn (22-0, 14 KOs) as a 14-1 favorite to defeat an unbeaten yet unknown, unproven underdog. Dobson (16-0, 9 KOs) defeated unbeaten Mexican prospect Emmanuel Medina (then 16-0) by fifth-round technical knockout in July 2019 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, but Benn is widely viewed a steep step up in opposition for the Bronx, New York native.
Ilford’s Benn will fight for the second time in the United States within the past four months.
The son of British boxing legend Nigel Benn hasn’t been licensed to box in his home country since he twice tested positive for clomiphene, a banned substance, prior to his domestic showdown with family rival Chris Eubank Jr. The Eubank-Benn bout was canceled two days in advance of when it was scheduled to take place in October 2022 at O2 Arena in London.
England’s National Anti-Doping Panel lifted Benn’s suspension last July, but the British Boxing Board of Control and its performance-enhancing drug testing agency, UK Anti-Doping, appealed that decision. The appellate process is ongoing, though Benn’s hearing could be scheduled for some time this month.
The official weights for the five Benn-Dobson undercard bouts are listed below.
DAZN
Noon PT; 3 p.m. ET; 8 p.m. GMT
Austin Williams (15-0, 10 KOs), Milwaukee, 159.8 pounds vs. Armel Mbumba-Yassa (10-0, 7 KOs), Remscheid, Germany, 159.8 pounds, 10 rounds, middleweights.
Johnny Fisher (10-0, 9 KOs), London, 242.8 pounds vs. Dmytro Bezus (10-1, 5 KOs), Severodonetsk, Ukraine, 270 pounds, 8 rounds, heavyweights.
Khalil Coe (7-0-1, 5 KOs), Jersey City, New Jersey, 175.8 pounds vs. Gerardo Osuna (20-0, 18 KOs), Mexicali, Mexico, 175.2 pounds, 8 rounds, light heavyweights.
DAZN
11 a.m. PT; 2 p.m. PT; 7 p.m. GMT
George Liddard (5-0, 3 KOs), Billericay, England, 162.4 pounds vs. Andrew Buchanan (3-0-1, 2 KOs), Hesperia, California, 164.4 pounds, 6 rounds, super middleweights.
Jimmy Sains (2-0, 2 KOs), London, 165.4 pounds vs. Alejandro Avalos (1-2, 0 KOs), San Antonio, 161.6 pounds, 4 rounds, super middleweights.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for krikya360.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.