Conor Benn calls out UFC pound-for-pound star Ilia Topuria for bare-knuckle fight

As Benn prepares for his rematch with Chris Eubank Jr, he called out fighters who think they can cross over to boxing

Conor Benn has called out one of the most feared fighters in the UFC for a bare-knuckle boxing match.

In a video posted by TNT Sports, Benn took aim at UFC fighters who think they can cross over to boxing and be successful, calling out a pound-for-pound star and two-weight champion Ilia Topuria.

Benn said: “Any of these MMA lot want to come over to boxing, if you fancy somebody, you can come get it… nasty. I’ll fight anybody – bareknuckle – that wants to come over from the UFC. Ilia, I’ve got these hands brother.”

Topuria is one of the most dangerous fighters in the UFC today, holding a record of 17-0 with 15 of those victories inside the distance.

He recently won the UFC lightweight title, knocking out Charles Oliveira to claim the vacant gold. That followed his decision to give up the featherweight belt, which he took with a vicious knockout of Alex Volkanovski, who is considered as one of the greatest 145lb fighters of all time. He also retained the featherweight title by knocking out Max Holloway, another featherweight great.

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Topuria managed a hammer fist on Oliveira after dropping the former champ (Getty Images)

Benn believes, even without gloves, his striking is more than enough to topple the UFC star, but quickly qualified his callout by saying that he would never get in the cage because he knows that he would get beaten, which is why he has a problem with UFC fighters showing 'disrespect' to boxers.

Benn said: “Listen, I ain’t stupid enough to go in the cage. Do you know why? Because I would get my ass handed to me. But for them thinking they can come over and do that to us, it’s a liberty. Don’t disrespect us boxers.”

Both men operate at similar weights, with Benn having had fights between 147lb and 160lb, and Topuria between 145lb and 155lb, so a crossover super-fight is not outside of the realms of possibility.

But the “Destroyer” is currently tied up in his rematch with Chris Eubank Jr on 15 November, back at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, after he suffered his first loss in a fight of the year contender in April.

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