Conor Benn calls Ryan Garcia 'spoiled brat' after heated faceoff

Conor Benn called Ryan Garcia a spoiled brat after the two welterweights had to be pulled apart at their first press conference.

Zuffa Boxing announced earlier this week that Benn will challenge Garcia for his WBC lightweight belt on Sept. 12 in Las Vegas. The faceoff turned physical immediately, with Dana White stepping in to separate them. Benn told MMA Fighting he was ready to throw down on the spot. "I wanted to punch his head in, for sure," he said. "I would have had it there and then with him."

Benn dismisses Garcia as lightweight cherry-pick

The Brit insisted Garcia only called him out after beating Regis Prograis, ducking him before and after the Eubank fights. "It just goes to show who he is at heart," Benn said, per MMA Fighting. "He ain't taking this fight for legacy. He ain't taking this fight for anything other than trying to pick an easy fight." Benn added that the WBC made him mandatory and suggested Garcia should move up to middleweight instead.

Benn said the Garcia fight carries less spite than his rivalry with Chris Eubank Jr., which he described as a generational family feud with bragging rights on the line. "I don't want to hurt the kid," he said about Garcia. "I want to have a good fight and beat him." Still, Benn made clear he has no respect for the American. "He carries on like a little child, throwing his toys out the pram, having social media tantrums," he said. "You think I'm worried about him?"

Benn is coming off a Fight of the Year candidate at middleweight against Eubank Jr. and now drops back down to 135 pounds for his first world title shot. The fight takes place in Vegas on Sept. 12.

Original reporting:

• mmafighting.com — Conor Benn rips into ‘spoiled brat’ Ryan Garcia after getting separated at first faceoff | MMA Fighting