Five fights were confirmed Thursday for the Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn 2 undercard.
Matchroom and Queensberry will renew hostilities with two bouts on the Nov. 15 card at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as welterweights Jack Catterall and Ekow Essuman are slated to square off, and Sam Gilley will face Ishmael Davis for the vacant British super welterweight title.
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Catterall (31-2, 13 KOs) moved up to welterweight after losing a split-decision upset to Arnold Barboza for the WBO interim super lightweight title. Catterall has had one fight at the new weight, a technical unanimous decision win over Harlem Eubank in July. Catterall recently linked up with trainer Bozy Ennis, the father of Jaron “Boots” Ennis.
Essuman (22-1, 8 KOs) recorded the best win of his career in May in Glasgow, Scotland, retiring Josh Taylor in the former undisputed champion’s homecoming bout. “The Engine” has won three fights in a row since he lost his British and Commonwealth titles to Harry Scarff in November 2023.
Gilley (18-1-1, 9 KOs) fought to a shocking draw against journeyman Gideon Onyenani in June. The “Magic Man” was on a seven-fight win streak — which included capturing the English and Commonwealth belts — until the unexpected blemish.
Davis (13-3, 6 KOs) has lost three fights in a row. He stepped in on short notice on back-to-back occasions in 2024, losing a majority decision to Josh Kelly at Wembley Stadium in September before being stopped by Serhii Bohachuk three months later in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Davis was handed a controversial loss by Caoimhin Agyarko earlier this month on the Lewis Crocker vs. Paddy Donovan undercard and now faces a quick turnaround against Gilley.
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Elsewhere on the card, Adam Azim has the first fight of his new deal with Ben Shalom’s BOXXER against Zaur Abdullaev at super lightweight.
Azim (13-0, 10 KOs) became a free agent following Sky Sports’ decision not to renew its four-year £36 million ($47.9contract with BOXXER in June. The 23-year-old re-signed with BOXXER earlier this month and lands his first fight on one of the biggest cards of the year. Azim stopped Sergey Lipinets in nine rounds in February.
Abdullaev (20-2, 12 KOs) is moving up a weight class. The Russian was defeated on points by now-IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla in May for the interim title. It marked the end of a nine-fight win streak for Abdullaev, whose only other career defeat came at the hands of Devin Haney in 2019.
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Richard Riakporhe (18-1, 14 KOs) will face Tommy Welch (16-0, 9 KOs) in a heavyweight contest. Riakporhe unsuccessfully challenged for the WBO cruiserweight title against Chris Billam-Smith in June 2024. He then moved up to heavyweight and rebounded with a win over Kevin Nicolas Espindola in May. Welch, the son of former British heavyweight champion Scott Welch, is undefeated as a pro but will be taking a monumental step up against Riakporhe. Welch has never been scheduled for more than eight rounds.
Rounding out the card, Joe Gallagher-trained prospect Mikie Tallon (10-0, 1 KO) meets Fezan Shahid (4-2-2) in a flyweight bout.
Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn full fight card:
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Middleweight: Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn
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Welterweight: Jack Catterall vs. Ekow Essuman
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Super lightweight: Adam Azim vs. Zaur Abdullaev
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Heavyweight: Richard Riakporhe vs. Tommy Welch
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Super welterweight: Sam Gilley vs. Ishmael Davis
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Flyweight: Mikie Tallon vs. Fezan Shahid