"It was his night" - Chris van Heerden reflects on his knockout loss against Conor Benn
Chris van Heerden has shared his thoughts on his defeat against Conor Benn last night at the Manchester Arena. The South African believes he started the contest well but gave full credit to Benn, who landed a devastating right hand in the second round to end the fight.
'The Destroyer' moves to 21-0 and is likely to face a step up in competition for his next bout.
Watch the fight highlights of Conor Benn vs. Chris van Heerden:
Here's what van Heerden said in an interview with iFL TV:
"Not the way I thought it would play out you know, it changed very quickly. I feel like we had a good scrap in round one and then I felt confident, gotta shake off this ring rust and this is gonna be a good fight. We came out in round two and the next moment I was buzzing and I was on the floor. Credit to Conor, he's explosive and quick, it was his night, he did good."
Chris van Heerden continued by stating how he believes Benn has the potential to reach the top level:
"He's on his way up, I was really surprised by his speed, velocity, the volume. He's right up there, I'm gonna follow him, I'm excited for him."
Watch van Heerden's full interview with iFL TV:
What's next for Conor Benn?
It remains to be seen how far the son of the legendary Nigel Benn can go. Benn has shown significant improvement in the last few years and has beaten legitimate contenders in the welterweight division such as Chris Algieri, Samuel Vargas, Adrian Granados and now van Heerden.
Following his victory, Amir Khan entered the ring to congratulate Benn and there is speculation that a fight could take place between the two Brits. Khan has decided to not retire after his loss against Kell Brook back in February and would be a high-profile opponent for 'The Destroyer'.
Watch Khan enter the ring to congratulate Benn:
However, Benn might be too dangerous for 'King Khan' at this stage of his career. It is plausible that the Essex fighter could take on a fresher opponent next like Keith Thurman, Danny Garcia or David Avanesyan instead.