Conor Benn has revealed he felt suicidal after his positive drugs tests caused his fight with Chris Eubank Jr to be cancelled in October.
Former two-weight world champion Benn said in an interview on TalkTV show Piers Morgan Uncensored that “I didn’t think I’d see another day”.
Benn’s much-hyped showdown with Eubank was called off just three days before it was due to take place after the former admitted to failing drugs tests in July and September.
Boxer Conor Benn says he was on the brink of suicide following positive drug tests for a banned substance ahead of his clash with Chris Eubank Jr.
Watch the full interview at 8pm tonight on TalkTV.@piersmorgan | @conornigel | @TalkTV— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) March 6, 2023
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Benn, who has since been cleared of an intentional doping offence by the World Boxing Council, was asked by Morgan if he had felt suicidal and he replied: “Yeah, I’d say so, yeah and it upsets me now because I don’t know how I got so bad. I got in a really bad way.”
The 26-year-old said: “I struggled. There was probably about two months where… I was in a really bad way.”
When asked if he had spoken to his father, former world champion Nigel Benn, about his emotional state, Benn added: “I did, but my dad was in a bad way as well.
“Over this, yeah. I was in a bad way. I was sobbing most nights. I didn’t want to go to sleep because I knew I had to wake up to… You’ve got to remember this was a nightmare for me. How has this happened? How have I got into this situation?”
Last month, the WBC ruled a “highly elevated consumption of eggs” was considered a “reasonable explanation” for Benn’s adverse finding.
WBC RULING REGARDING CONOR BENN https://t.co/1Tc1mjXUze pic.twitter.com/r7u0EUkWDn
— World Boxing Council (@WBCBoxing) February 22, 2023
Benn also spoke about the abuse he has received on social media since the Eubank fight was called off, adding: “There’s been too many. ‘Kill yourself’, racist comments to my son, to my family.
“Nothing in person, it’s cowardly. I don’t think it’s social media that bothers me, it was more so the shame I felt leaving the house, although I’d done nothing wrong.
“I was having night terrors, panic attacks. I don’t throw these words (around). Mental health, I was really struggling. I was in a really bad way and I was coping terribly with it. I was coping really bad with it.”
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can freephone the Samaritans 24 hours a day for confidential support at 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org.
Alternatively, the contact information for a range of mental health supports is available at mentalhealthireland.ie/get-support.
In the case of an emergency, or if you or someone you know is at risk of suicide or self-harm, dial 999/112.
