Conor Benn has revealed his British rival Kell Brook has priced himself out of a domestic showdown following talks with Eddie Hearn. The welterweight young buck has been gunning for Special K ever since his sixth-round stoppage of Amir Khan just under a fortnight ago.
Benn is expected to face South African Chris van Heerden on April 16 when he returns to action following his demolition of Chris Algieri in December in Liverpool.
But the 25-year-old cannot help but look towards Brook, who would represent the perfect next step on his journey towards world titles.
Earlier this week, Matchroom chief Hearn detailed talks with his old fighter Brook after a potential showdown with Benn later in the year.
However, taking to Instagram, Benn has now revealed all hope of a deal with Brook has been lost due to his copious financial demands.
He wrote: “[He] outpriced himself, so we move.”
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Benn’s promoter Hearn has been actively pursuing the matchup, as he detailed earlier this week to iFL TV.
“I’ve been talking to Kell Brook and his dad,” he said. “I won’t go into it too much, but we’ve made them a significant offer to fight Conor Benn.
“I think with Kell if he fights again, he should and would do it sooner rather than later.
“Once he starts enjoying himself and relaxing and the weight goes back on, it becomes more of a mission.
“Right now, he looks like a million dollars, he’d be ready to fight in June.
“But at the same time, I think it’s going to take a ridiculous amount of money to get him back in the ring because he doesn’t really need it.
“I reckon he’s thinking to himself, ‘Well if the money’s crazy, I’ll do it. But if not, we’re happy.
“It’s important that they’re happy and I understand their position.
“For us, we just tried to say, ‘If you’re ready to go in June, we’ll hold our April 16 fight’.”
Fellow domestic rival Chris Eubank Jr has also thrown his name into contention for a fight with Brook, who he claims deprived him of a world title shot against Gennady Golovkin in 2016.
However, speaking after his one-sided victory over Khan, Brook told Eubank Jr and Benn to fight each other first before forming an orderly queue.