Despite no longer promoting Conor Benn, Eddie Hearn has named a former world champion he would like to see ‘The Destroyer’ lock horns with.

The 29-year-old ended his working relationship with Hearn last month, before announcing that he has inked a one-fight deal with Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing.

This came as an almighty shock, given the loyalty that Hearn and Matchroom Boxing had shown toward Benn following his drugs scandal in 2022.

Back then, the Ilford man twice tested positive for banned substance clomiphene ahead of his cancelled encounter with Chris Eubank Jr, who he nonetheless fought on two occasions last year.

Their first middleweight contest saw Eubank claim a unanimous decision victory, only to lose by a much wider margin in their immediate rematch last November.

For both contests, Eubank was restricted by a second-day rehydration limit of 170lbs, while Benn – the naturally smaller man – encountered minimal difficulty with the scales.

For his next outing, the former welterweight contender will face Regis Prograis at a catchweight of 150lbs, featuring on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs Arslanbek Makhmudov on April 11.

Whether this qualifies as his Zuffa debut, it remains difficult to tell, but Benn’s former promoter has already suggested a possible opponent after Prograis.

Speaking with Pro Boxing Fans and other media members, Hearn named Jaron Ennis as the fighter he would wish to see Benn square off against.

“Conor’s a good fighter – I’m not going to start slagging him off as a fighter, because his improvements have been incredible.

“I think ‘Boots’ Ennis is arguably [the] pound-for-pound No.1 fighter, so I think he’d win the fight, but Conor’s a good fighter.”

Former unified welterweight champion Ennis now looks to claim world honours at 154lb, with his next outing reported to be against WBO and WBA titlist Xander Zayas.