Conor Benn
Conor Benn

LAS VEGAS — British boxer Conor Benn says he is stepping back to spend time with his children following his first world title challenge, a bid that ended in a lopsided second-round stoppage loss to Ryan Garcia over the weekend at T-Mobile Arena.

Garcia retained his WBC welterweight title Saturday night, dropping Benn with a sensational overhand right before referee Thomas Taylor stopped the contest just 1 minute, 25 seconds into the second round. The defeat came in Benn's first world title fight after 27 professional bouts, pushing his record to 25-2, while Garcia improved to 26-2 with 21 knockouts. Benn had pressed the action in the opening round, but Garcia boxed from the outside, staggered him with a left hook, and caught him with a right uppercut before finishing the job moments into the second round.

In a lengthy statement posted to social media platform X, Benn reflected on the loss and addressed the question he said fans have repeatedly asked him since the fight. "Everybody keeps asking 'What's next for Conor Benn?' The truth is, I don't have the answer," Benn wrote. He looked back on his career with a sense of disbelief at how far it had carried him. "If you'd asked the 19 year old version of me whether I thought I'd be standing here ten years later, having lived through everything I have, I'd have told you that you were crazy."

Benn described the effort he has put into his boxing career, framing it as something he owed to the fans who have supported him. "I train hard. I sacrifice. I've given this game 110% every time I've stepped through those ropes, I've wanted to give people unforgettable nights and entertain," he wrote. "That's what this has always been about for me. People spend their hard earned money to come and watch guys like us fight. I've never taken that for granted. I've always wanted to be a servant of the public and give everything I have when it matters."

But Benn acknowledged that his dedication to the sport had come with a personal cost, one he said had fallen hardest on the people closest to him. "Giving everything comes at a cost. And the people who have paid that cost more than anyone are my family and my kids," he wrote. "They've sacrificed time with their Dad so I could chase this dream. They've had to share me with this sport their entire lives." He said that, for now, his priorities are shifting. "So when people ask me what's next for Conor Benn, right now the answer is simple. Time with my kids."

Benn closed his statement by thanking the fans who supported him through the loss, including those who traveled to Las Vegas for the fight or stayed up through the night to watch it from home. "Fight fans, thank you. Those who travelled to Vegas, those who stayed up until the early hours. I will never take your support for granted, especially on those nights things don't go to plan."

Saturday's fight marked a significant career milestone for the 29-year-old Benn, the son of former two-division world champion Nigel Benn, who was competing for a world title for the first time despite a lengthy professional run that included 25 wins and 14 knockouts. Benn was fighting under the Zuffa Boxing promotional banner for the second time following his move away from promoter Eddie Hearn's Matchroom, and entered the bout facing steep odds against the defending champion. The Las Vegas crowd at T-Mobile Arena skewed heavily in Garcia's favor, with Mexican fight fans turning out in large numbers to support the champion.

The loss marked the second defeat of Benn's professional career, following a 12-round unanimous decision loss to Chris Eubank Jr. in April 2025 in a non-title bout at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. That fight capped years of anticipation dating back to 2022, when an originally scheduled Benn-Eubank Jr. matchup was called off after Benn recorded an adverse finding in a drug test, triggering a lengthy suspension from UK Anti-Doping and forcing him out of the ring for nearly a year. Benn has consistently denied intentionally using a banned substance.

Following his suspension, Benn rebuilt his career largely in the United States, opening with a unanimous decision win over Rodolfo Orozco in Orlando in September 2023, followed by further wins that eventually earned him Saturday's shot at Garcia's title. Despite the setback, Benn's record of 25 wins against just two losses reflects a career that, aside from the two defeats against significantly more experienced or naturally gifted opposition in Eubank Jr. and Garcia, has otherwise been defined by sustained success at the domestic and international level.

Neither Benn's promotional team nor Zuffa Boxing has announced any details regarding a potential return to the ring, and Benn's own statement offered no timeline for when, or whether, he intends to pursue another title opportunity. For now, based on his own account, the focus has shifted away from the sport that has defined the past decade of his life and toward the family members he says have supported him through it.