Victor Conte has worn a lot of hats in the world of performance-enhancing drugs. Once labeled a menace to sports, he now seems determined to author a noble final act.
Still, red flags are often raised when Conte’s name is mentioned.
He is inarguably outspoken and always ready to make a headline. Conte’s latest target: Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing. The two men have traded words via the media and social media over the past few weeks on the subject of drug testing.
Conte has taken issue with various anti-doping issues involving fighters on Matchroom bills – most notably Conor Benn, whose situation Conte has been vocal about.
There has been no resolution yet in Benn’s case, with all parties awaiting a decision on the appeal process lodged with the British Boxing Board of Control and U.K. Anti-Doping. Benn’s hope is for the National Anti-Doping Agency to reverse its decision and allow the fighter to continue boxing in the U.K.
In October 2022, Benn became embroiled in a performance-enhancing drug controversy linked to his fight against Chris Eubank Jr., canceled after he tested positive for clomiphene – a female fertility drug.
Benn has stated and maintained his innocence
Benn has since fought in the United States (in both Florida and Nevada), but he has yet to make his domestic return.
The lack of resolution seems to bother Conte, who is a self-proclaimed equal opportunist when it comes to targeting drug-testing hypocrisy.
Now Conte is willing to put his money where his mouth is. The latest verbal battle comes with an curious circumstance – Conte offering to pay for boxing Hearn to take a drug test.
“This started when I saw he was being a fitness model and a fitness guru in ‘Men’s Health’ magazine in the U.K.,” Conte told Boxing Scene. “He said he was following the advice and some of the protocols from Dillian Whyte, and you know Dillian Whyte had that positive test.”
“So, because at a certain point he started taking his shirt off and taking pictures with his new muscles, I offered to do VADA testing for him,” Conte said of Hearn. “After calling me a series of names, he said, ‘If Victor wants to pay for it, I accept – I will do it.’ He said this more than one time publicly.”
Conte also said he would fund the testing. And although that might seem absurd, it also speaks to what Conte seemingly wants to see addressed – transparent, hypocrisy-free drug testing in sports.
“So I created a check for $15,000 dollars,” Conte said. “That’s one year of random VADA testing for Eddie. This has now been three weeks ago – I have sent him two or three tweets since then asking him why he didn’t enroll.”
Conte has since literally doubled down. He has said that he would allocate another $15,000 for Benn to undergo testing. Conte says boxing needs leadership, especially in the anti-doping community.
“How about if I take that $15,000 check and give it to VADA and change the beneficiary to Conor Benn instead of Eddie Hearn,” Conte said. “Because Eddie Hearn doesn’t seem to want to do the testing or at least he hasn’t responded.”