Boxing-Promoter Warren and Eubank Jr urged to resolve dispute over 'scumbag' rant

LONDON (Reuters) - British boxing promoter Frank Warren and Chris Eubank Jr have been urged to resolve their legal dispute over Eubank's rant about Warren at a press conference before Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol's undisputed light-heavyweight world title fight.

Warren, the 73-year-old promoter of Beterbiev and former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, is suing Eubank, 35, over comments made during a promotional event in London in September.

Eubank, who was fighting on the Beterbiev-Bivol undercard, was asked why he had signed with promoter BOXXER and replied: "Because every other promoter out here is a scumbag, that's why.

"You've got Frank Warren behind me, been lying and cheating his way through boxing for the last couple of decades."

Eubank apologised later that day and Warren said in a statement that he accepted the apology, but sued Eubank for slander and libel at London's High Court in December.

Neither Warren nor Eubank attended court on Friday for a preliminary hearing to determine the "natural and ordinary meaning" of Eubank's comments and subsequent social media posts.

Warren's lawyer Richard Munden said Eubank's statement was "about as strong and direct a slur as can be imagined" and argued viewers would be given the impression that Warren had defrauded boxers he promoted over the course of 20 years.

Eubank's lawyer Victoria Jolliffe, however, argued in court filings that viewers would know boxing press conferences often feature "combative but entertaining verbal blows" and that Warren's lawyers were overcomplicating what Eubank said.

Judge Robert Jay said the meaning of Eubank's comments was that Warren had "frequently been guilty of lying and cheating in his business dealings as a boxing promoter".

The judge urged the parties to try to resolve the dispute outside of court, saying: "If you don't want to mediate, fair enough, you are entitled to a trial. But I would have thought this type of case is capable of being mediated."

(Reporting by Sam Tobin; Editing by Christian Radnedge)