Tag Archives: Dereck Chisora

Dereck Chisora wants to destroy Avila, flatten David Price then challenge for a world title

11 Apr
As featured on NewsNow: Boxing news

Brash heavyweight star Dereck Chisora says he’s ready destroy when he makes his big comeback against Argentinian Hector Alfredo Avila on Saturday, April 20 at Wembley Arena. The Former British and Commonwealth champion will feature in a ten-round contest on a packed show alongside British stars Nathan Cleverly, Paul Butler, Liam Walsh and Scott Harrison, all live and exclusive on BoxNation.

Credit: KMG/ Dmitriy Abramov

Credit: KMG/ Dmitriy Abramov

The hard-hitting Londoner has been out of the ring since July last year when he was stopped in the fifth round by rival David Haye in a thrilling fight at West Ham United’s Boleyn Ground at Upton Park that attracted over 30,000 fans – the biggest live boxing event in the UK last year – and one of the most exciting domestic heavyweight fights in recent memory.

He took WBC World Champion Vitali Klitshko the distance last February and pushed the long-reigning Ukrainian the hardest since Lennox Lewis nearly ten years previously, only to lose on the judges scorecards.

Chisora’s British Boxing Board of Control license was reissued last month after it was withdrawn last year and the Finchley puncher is now desperate to fight his way back into world title contention as soon as possible.

“I’m back in business and I’m on the road back to the world title,” said Chisora. “I’m looking to destroy Avila first at Wembley Arena and then face one of the other so called rivals next, if it’s David Price then great, I know he wouldn’t be able to stand up to my power and he’d be a good step in the right direction for me.

“It’s exciting to be back in the ring after almost a year out. I’ve been working hard in the gym with my trainer Don Charles, making changes and improving, and we’re both tunnel focused on achieving the goal of winning the world heavyweight title.

“I’m still only 29 and I’ve had only 19 fights. Aside from Haye, I took Tyson Fury the distance despite not being in the best shape, I was robbed against Robert Helenius for the European title in his backyard and then took Klitschko the distance straight after.

“The world title is my goal and I will achieve it.”

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David Haye wins grudge fight as Dereck Chisora is crushed in five rounds

14 Jul

Alan Dawson – London

David Haye teekayoed Dereck Chisora in a forceful manner on Saturday, July 14 as the former heavyweight world titlist, a champion in two weight classes, became the first man to knockdown steely-chinned Chisora as Dereck was dropped twice in the fifth round of their Licensed To Thrill bout at the Boleyn Ground in Upton Park, London in front of an estimated 30,000 fans.

Direct link to article.

Dawson’s scorecard

Round 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Haye
 10 10 9 10 10 - - - - -
 - -
Chisora
 9 9 10
 9 7 - - - - - - -

Official verdict: Haye wins via 5Rd TKO.

“The finish… I can tell you, Dereck Chisora has one of the best chins I’ve hit in my life as I was hitting him with shots that puts people away but he was smiling at them,” Haye said to Box Nation, marveling at the durability of Chisora’s jawline.

“After doing these rounds, I respect him… he’ll be champion one day. He gave me more hard work than I anticipated. I had to dig deep, Dereck hit me with good shots. I did what great fighters do and did what I had to do to win.”

Haye (26-2-0, 24ko) was focused and determined from the time he entered the Boleyn Ground to when he made his ring-walk and, during the initial jousting inside the ring, Haye threw more range-finding punches in the opening 15 seconds alone than he had done during the same periods in his previous heavyweight outings. His shot output was analogous to his cruiserweight form but his willingness to trade rather than bounce-and-move allowed Chisora (15-4-0, 9ko) to find his own openings and he sneaked in a left hook.

Primarily known for being a pressure fighter, Chisora, against Haye, appeared perplexed at his opponent’s strategy and, instead of throwing unrelenting gloves like he did against Vitali Klitschko and Robert Helenius, Del Boy maintained a turgid guard. While Haye was fighting in a positive manner, his accuracy was perhaps not as high as it was prior to his one year layoff as his fists either swung at air or were blocked by the Finchley fighter’s forearms.

In round two, Haye landed a strong right that halted Chisora’s forward steps. Midway through the session, Chisora enjoyed his greatest success up to that point as he trapped Haye against the ropes and went to work yet the combatants were eventually seperated by referee Luis Pabon, of Puerto Rico.

Haye one-two’d upstairs at the start of the third but, again, was denied clean shots due to Chisora’s stubborn defence system. This did not perturb Haye, though, as the south Londoner smiled as he peeled off his own solitary shots and moved away from the pocket before Chisora had a chance to land a reply. Like he had done in the second, Chisora found good clubbing momentum when Haye was backed against the ropes and, when the two fighters were exchanging leather in a toe-to-toe tussle, Dereck landed a shot that rocked Haye back but the punch was dispatched after the bell had been rung. Few, however, could hear the bell as the timekeeper’s signal was drowned by the racous din from the 30,000 strong crowd.

Between rounds, Haye sat on his stool in discomfort and breathed heavy, signs of the consequences of a high tempo fight underneath hot lamps on a muggy, yet rain-sodden Summer evening in east London. Despite this, Haye was still able to slip punches effectively in the fourth but, as the fight evolved, so too did Chisora.

That evolution was stunted in the fifth as Haye connected with a one-two that was straight out of the textbook as the orthodox jab found the distance and the follow-up straight landed flush against Chisora’s flesh. When Chisora sought to crack a retaliation into Haye’s face, his opponent was gone. In the final 30 seconds, Chisora was on the floor – an unfamiliar sight for a man with his chin – as he failed to deal with a left hook, right hook two-punch combination.

Dereck made it to his feet, clinched when Haye looked for the finish but was again canvassed due to a five-punch flurry and looked in a bad way. Phenomenally, Chisora again got off the floor but Pabon had seen enough and waved the fight off.

With the emphatic nature of the victory, Haye defeated Chisora in a far more convincing manner than Klitschko did earlier this year. Commenting on the elusive match he has pursued since his defeat to Wladimir Klitschko, Haye said: “This sends a scary message to Vitali and I doubt he’ll want to fight me now. He’ll fight some chump that no one has heard of and disappear to be a politician. But if he wants a great fight, I’m here.”

Gracious in defeat, Del Boy said: “I want to thank the Luxembourg board [for sanctioning the fight when the British Boxing Board of Control refused Chisora a license to fight]. I owe David Haye £20,000! It goes to charity. He hit me with a great shot. I can’t remember what it was. But I’ll be back.”

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Chisora vows to physically remind Haye of Carl Thompson, Danny Dyer talks up Del Boy and David’s dust-up

30 Jun

On The Beak – Admin

Dereck Chisora says he’ll give David Haye a bigger nightmare than Carl Thompson did when they meet in their grudge fight on Saturday, July 14. The Finchley scrapper takes on Haye in one of British boxing’s biggest fights at West Ham United’s ground, live on BoxNation. Thompson battered Haye, then a cruiserweight, into submission in 2004 as the Hayemaker suffered his first record.

Direct link to article.

Chisora (15-3-0, 9ko) stormed: “Haye’s going to wish he was in the ring with Carl Thompson again, that was mild compared to what I’m going to be dishing out to him. It’s going to be like a bad dream coming back to haunt Haye, I’ll leave him hanging on the ropes just like Thompson did. I’ll be taking Haye out of the game, this will be his last fight in boxing and he can forgot about fighting any Klitschko again.

“Wladimir played with him for twelve rounds [but] the difference is I’ll be punishing him for twelve rounds and giving him the worst beating he’s had. I’ll destroy him. He’ll need more than one of his Hayemaker’s to stop me coming at him at night.”

Chisora says he refuses to lose to his London rival and that his pride and fighting heart will break Haye (25-2-0, 23ko) down on the night. He added: “There’s too much pride on the line, there’s no way I’m going to lose to Haye. I’m going to break Haye down mentally and physically, he’s all mouth and he now knows that he’s in a real fight against me. What’s he going to do when he lands his best punches and they have no effect and I’m still in his face throwing punches?”

*

Actor and presenter Danny Dyer (Human Traffic, The Football Factory, The Business) says there hasn’t been a heavyweight showdown that he’s looked forward to more than David Haye and Dereck Chisora. Dyer, a West Ham United fan, filmed a special promo for the fight with a BoxNation crew around Upton Park recently and said: “What makes this fight so exciting is that it’s so unpredictable and both fighters are going to be knocking seven bells out of each other.

“There hasn’t been a fight I’ve been looking forward to more than these two heavyweights getting it on and they’re both British which makes it a must see for fans. Both guys have got so much hate in them towards each other and it’s all going to explode in the ring on the night.

“I can’t wait for it, It’s too tough to call a winner, but it’s going to be one hell of a fight.”

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Povetkin v Rahman moves off London bill ‘due to organisational aspects’

28 Jun

Words: Petra Kirsch – Gelsenkirchen

Picture: Andreas Sauer – Sauerland

Reigning ‘Regular’ WBA heavyweight world titlist Alexander Povetkin will not be trading leather with mandatory challenger Hasim Rahman at the Boleyn Ground in London on Saturday, July 14 because of a clash between licensing in Britain and broadcasting in Germany. While the David Haye and Dereck Chisora main event will remain in England, Povetkin and Rahman will be rehoused in Hamburg on the same night.

Direct link to article.

Povetkin will box in Hamburg for the second time as he hopes to send The Rock Rahman to the floor

Licensing at the football ground of West Ham United dictates that Haye and Chisora’s grudge fight could not begin later than 22:00 and, due to German TV network ARD’s demands that Povetkin v Rahman fill that time slot and occur prior to the former fight, scheduling proved impossible. Chris Meyer, managing director of Sauerland Event, explained: “It is due to organisational aspects; the English time schedule was too tight.”

He continued: “We wouldn’t have been able to guarantee that the fight could have been broadcasted live in Germany. Therefore the heavyweight world championship will be staged in Hamburg. There are not a lot of cities in Germany which can host such an event on such short notice. Hamburg is a real boxing city with a great audience and a lot of boxing tradition. Furthermore the city possesses the required infrastructure to host such a big event.”

Povetkin added: “My fourth fight as a pro was in Hamburg, back in 2005. Obviously I remember that fight very well. I have also been there a few times to visit my promoter Kalle Sauerland.”

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Luxembourg Boxing Federation green-light Dereck Chisora and David Haye fight despite EBU expulsion threat

6 Jun

On The Beak – Admin

The Federation Luxembourgeoise de Boxe (Luxembourg Boxing Federation) convened a special general meeting in Luxembourg on Tuesday, June 5 to discuss the European Boxing Union (EBU) vote and to decide whether they are remaining on course to back the David Haye versus Dereck Chisora fight at the Boleyn Ground in London on Saturday, July 14 and to develop the sanctioning of the show in the UK.

Direct link to article.

The show must go on…

The vote of the 12 members was eight votes in favour and four votes against. Therefore the LBF is backing the show along with the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) and the World Boxing Association (WBA), who’s International and Intercontinental titles will be contested, and the promotion will definitely go ahead.

The heavyweight main event will be supported by an undercard Sauerland fight between Alexander Povetkin and Hasim Rahman.

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David Haye’s latest Knockout app contains glass bottles and D. Boy

23 May

Tommy Barber – London

Former two-weight world champion and perpetual headline mainstay, David Haye has, on the eve of his July 14 showdown with fellow Londoner Dereck Chisora at the Boleyn Ground in Upton Park, released the second installment of his Knockout series of iPhone apps. The game, however, has already received censure for it’s distaste as it features an opponent named “D. Boy” and the ability to finish challengers off with a glass bottle.

Direct link to article.

(Embedded video above credit – YouTube, GrubbyHandsTV)

The game’s creator Danny Pearce, company director of Grubby Hands Ltd, said: “‘David Haye’s Knockout’ demands a cunning strategy and an evasive game-plan to outwit rivals, claim the cabinet of pristine trophies and ultimately get the championship belt back. Armed with taunts and tricks up his sleeve, Haye is a lean, mean fighting machine ready to knock out every enemy in his way.”

Pearce continued: “Players can show their friends who’s the boss in the global leader board, as well as grab the gory Game Centre achievements in rich Retina graphics and High Definition.”

Haye (25-2-0, 23ko) added: “I’m proud to put my name to this game, as it’s every bit as exciting as the first version of ‘David Haye’s Knockout’. The guys at Grubby Hands Ltd have made plenty of improvements and added one or two elements that I’m sure will cause lots of heated debate. I only hope the game’s players will have as much fun bashing up ‘D. Boy’ as I will putting a beating on Dereck Chisora come July 14.”

The Haye and Chisora (15-3-0, 9ko) rivalry is a recent one as the animosity stems from a post-fight press conference between Del Boy and Vitali Klitschko that Haye attended and was ultimately dragged into a notorious brawl with Chisora. Haye was seen – on photograph and on film – punching Dereck whilst clasping a glass bottle.

The high-profile bout between the two Britons has gone down well with the public as 17,000 tickets were sold on day one alone, however, it has polarised the industry. The British Boxing Board of Control have lambasted the organisers and the event’s participants for the July 14 show while the German Boxing Board too have expressed regret over the show. To obtain licensing, promoter Frank Warren had to appeal to the Luxembourg Board.

The victor on fight night will receive the WBO and WBA intercontinental heavyweight titles.

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David Haye and Dereck Chisora’s grudge fight is ‘the biggest bout between two British boxers this century’

17 May

Alan Dawson – London

There may have been a steel fence separating David Haye from his bitter heavyweight rival Dereck Chisora at a press conference at the Boleyn Ground in Upton Park, East London this week but there was nothing to block the inevitable verbal jousting that ensued. The two Britons get their dukes up on Saturday, July 14 and both issued early caveats as Haye told Chisora he could expect a “slow, concussive beating” while Del Boy said he’ll “whoop” David’s ass.

Direct link to article.

Steel fence reminiscent of Vargas v Mayorga promotion in 2007

Interest in the match-up has been rife despite the apparent controversy surrounding the licensing of the main protagonists. Neither Haye nor Chisora are licensed boxers with the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBoC) as the former has come out of retirement and is yet to renew while the latter had his withdrawn due to his notorious behaviour prior, during and after his challenge of Vitali Klitschko’s WBC championship title.

Rather than promoting an unlicensed show, Warren has received backing from the Federation Luxembourgeoise de Boxe and his eagerness to pitch his prizefighter against slick south Londoner Haye has been vindicated as over 20,000 tickets have already been sold. The media event brawl earlier in the year dominated the sports headlines for days and the clear animosity between them largely means the main attraction on July 14 promotes and sells itself, however, that has not prevented Frank Warren from proclaiming this duel as “the biggest fight between two British boxers this century”.

Warren was always one to condemn Chisora’s actions in Munich, when Dereck stepped to Haye having threatened him at the dais during his post-fight conference with Vitali Klitschko. Haye, wielding a glass beer bottle, landed a haymaker of a right hand onto Dereck’s chin and a skirmish broke out. With his dream fight with Vitali failing to bear imminent fruit, Haye booked himself a meaty match with pressure-fighting Chisora, claiming it to be a “no brainer”.

He said: “I always said I’d only come out of retirement to fight Wladimir or Vitali Klitschko and it was only up until recently that the idea of fighting Dereck came to my mind but, as far as I’m concerned, me and Dereck settled our differences in Germany. He said he was going to come down, give me two slaps and break my jaw… he got in my face and he ended up on the floor. As far as I was concerned, that was sorted out then.”

Realistically, between 30,000 to 40,000 fight fans could attend Haye v Chisora

“Frank Warren put it to us that we could have a big showdown in England in a football stadium,” continued Haye, a world champion of two weight divisions having unified three major belts at cruiserweight, coupled with his capture of the WBA heavyweight title when he decisioned Nikolai Valuev in a tactical ‘David v Goliath’ tussle. “In my mind I was always anticipating fighting Vitali in the summer so I was ready to fight anyway but that fight might not happen in a while.

“Chisora has got nothing I haven’t seen before, he’s not southpaw, he’s not 7’2, he’s not coming off an amazing winning streak… it’s a no brainer.”

Interrupting Haye was Chisora… an exciting fighter desperately searching for a victory having lost three of his last four (two convincingly [Vitali and Tyson Fury], one by questionable decision [Robert Helenius]): “Come in a couple weeks time I’m gonna whoop your ass,” said Dereck in a mellow yet menacing tone that has come to typify his pre-fight demeanour.

“This is going to be an exhibition,” retorted Haye, a heavyweight famed for his athleticism, evasive maneuvering and powerful mitts. “I’m going to break this guy down, I’m glad he’s got a good chin and can take a whack as he’ll take a nice, slow concussive beating.”

Turning to the abundance of press figures in front of him, Chisora stated that: “[Everyone has] heard it all before.” He continued: “David gives all the big talk [but] he gets in the ring and he doesn’t deliver. You know what David, keep talking, the more you keep talking, the more you get me upset and the more upset I get the more I jump over this [steel fence] right now.”

With a devilishly playground smile beginning to show on his face, Haye, who enjoys ruffling the feathers of his opponents, continued to chide Chisora: “And you’ll get knocked out again, eh? We’ve played that game before and you lost! Can’t you remember?”

Chisora said: “Let me tell you something… I saw David in London a couple weeks ago and he picked up a knife.”

Haye clarified: “I was eating a steak!”

Haye may have claimed their altercation was settled three months ago, but this is one beef that is clearly still sizzling in the pan…

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Poll indicates majority eager to watch David Haye and Dereck Chisora, Dillian Whyte declines spar invite from both fighters

16 May

On The Beak – Admin

A massive 71 per cent of the public would pay to watch David Haye’s big heavyweight showdown with Dereck Chisora, a poll held on the Daily Mail online revealed. The bitter rivals meet in the ring on Saturday, July 14 at West Ham’s Boleyn Ground at Upton Park in one of boxing’s biggest ever grudge fights. And only 29 per cent didn’t want to watch the fight which has become a hot talking point.

Direct link to article.

A fence separated the fighters in an attempt to prevent further unsavoriness

Since the pair met last week head-to-head for the first time to announce their fight, tickets have been selling fast with over 20,000 sold already. The fight will be televised live and exclusive on BoxNation (Sky Ch. 456/Virgin Ch. 546).

The event is set to be well supported as ‘Regular’ WBA heavyweight champion Aleksandr Povetkin is to be pitched against mandatory challenger Hasim Rahman while prominent British lightweights Kevin Mitchell and Ricky Burns are rumoured to go at it for the WBO title at 135lbs.

*

Dillian ‘The Villain’ Whyte has delivered a knockout punch to David Haye and Dereck Chisora by refusing to spar with both fighters. The exciting London heavyweight prospect has sparred with them in the past, and when their summer grudge match was announced the rivals turned to unbeaten Whyte for help.

But Whyte (5-0-0, 2ko) who meets Zurab Noniashvili (13-7-1, 6ko) at Aintree Racecourse on Saturday refused. Whyte, 24, explained: “They have both asked me to spar ahead of their clash, and that leaves me in a difficult situation. I have thought about it and I am not going to spar with either of them because they are both friends. David and Dereck have helped me in my career so I don’t want to spar with one and create bad feeling with the other.”

Whyte, who beat British Olympic hope Anthony Joshua during a brief amateur career, has also sparred with David Price and Tyson Fury. Price (12-0-0, 10ko) heads Saturday’s bumper bill when he meets Sam Sexton for the vacant British and Commonwealth heavyweight title.

Whyte added: “I am a tough guy and when I go to spar I bring it. A lot of guys go to spar and lay down after a couple of rounds – that is not me.”

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David Price and Sam Sexton’s heavyweight title clash will bring prestige back to British boxing – Maloney

16 May

Tommy Barber – London

Following former British heavyweight champion Tyson Fury’s refusal to honour his mandatory challenger – David Price – together with the controversy surrounding Dereck Chisora and David Haye’s grudge fight this summer, promoter Frank Maloney is backing his premier prizefighter David Price to bring honour back to boxing in Britain. Price takes on Sam Sexton for the vacant Lonsdale title on Saturday, May 19 at the Aintree Racecourse, Merseyside.

Direct link to article.

One of the most brobdingnagian boxers within the sport, Price (12-0-0, 10ko) stands at a colossal 6’9 and therefore towers over weekend opponent Sexton (15-2-0, 6ko) by seven inches. Price is undefeated in 12 matches, is gradually building momentum as he continues to step up his level of competition and already has eyebrow-raising victories over John McDermott and Tom Dallas who were both knocked out in the first and second rounds, respectively.

Sexton is an experienced campaigner at domestic level having claimed the BBBoC Southern Area heavyweight title, the British championship as well as the Commonwealth belt. At 27, he has two stoppage triumphs on his resume over Martin Rogan, but twice fell short when boxing Dereck Chisora.

“David and Sam are both gentlemen and will give fans a fight to remember,” promised Maloney. “There has been no trash talking and whoever wins will be proud to call themselves British and Commonwealth champion.”

He added: “Fury tried to lessen the title by refusing to face David [and] Chisora and Haye have brought bad publicity to the sport.”

Maloney is confident his fighter will be the one to have his arm raised as winner once combat has concluded but believes Sexton can make for a good fight: “Obviously I am backing David to win, but Sam is a very good fighter and been a delight to work with during the build-up.”

In support of the main attraction, Maloney has put together a number of intriguing undercard bouts, including Ashley Theophane’s third defence of his British super lightweight title. Treasure Theophane takes on Darren Hamilton and, should he – as is expected – be successful, then he will keep the Lonsdale belt.

Also on the bill is a 140lb clash between Adil Anwar and Dave Ryan and heavyweight prospect Dillian Whyte versus Zurab Noniashvili.

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Baker writes open letter to the BBBoC as relations between the Board and licensees becomes more fractured

16 May

Bruce Baker – Professional Boxing Promoters Association

I was surprised to say the least at the British Boxing Board of Control’s [BBBoC] press statement dated May, 9 2012 in relation to the David Haye versus Dereck Chisora fight at West Ham and particularly the references to the Federation Luxembourgeoise de Boxe. I am also concerned at the threats made to our members and other licence holders of the Board of Control to withdraw their licences if they participate in the show.

Direct link to article.

Our Association has worked alongside the BBBoC for 13 years. Generally speaking this has been a good working relationship and we see no reason for this to change if we all genuinely share a passion for the betterment of British Boxing. However, over the last few years certain actions taken by the Board have alienated license holders and we have no effective vote on these decisions.

The only people who can vote and have a say in how the Board is run are the Area Council Officers. However, these Officers are not voted in by the licence holders but are appointed by the Board and the Board itself appoints its own directors. Therefore, there is no-one who can vote on any issues at all who has any duty to represent the licence holders and we feel we have no voice.

Whilst we raised these concerns with you, nothing happened and you refused to even discuss them. This culminated last year with a protest by license holders at the Company’s AGM. As a result of which the AGM was suspended with the Board agreeing to meet with a delegation of license holders to discuss the way forward. The delegation (democratically elected) met with you in Birmingham. We were told that you would listen to what we had to say but would make no changes; there was little point in us meeting.

Since our meeting in Birmingham, there have been further matters which caused us concern. Firstly Jane Couch’s licenses were taken away from her in what seemed to us to be a personal dispute with her and the Chairman rather than a matter which should have concerned the Board. This dispute exposed worrying concerns about Mr Giles before the Board stepped down having spent time and money fighting the dispute. Secondly, a complaint was made by Mr Frank Warren over the lack of BBBoC support of Dereck Chisora when he fought in Germany.

He alleged that had the Chairman been more pro-active then the issues in Germany (including checking the security arrangements) could have been avoided. I was not present in Germany and so do not know what happened, but whoever was responsible, it does show that the Board and the Chairman have lost the support of various licensees. I speculate, but this could be because the Chairman has other loyalties which could cause licence holders to question his full support. He is the Vice Chairman of the EBU and holds a prominent position with the WBC.

After our meeting in Birmingham, the members of our Association together with other licence holders entered into discussions with the Federation Luxembourgeoise de Boxe. The Federation has been in existence in its present form since inception in 1922. It is affiliated to the EBU, WBA, WBO, IBF and WBC and it therefore is recognized by the BBBoC.

Indeed the BBBoC have authorised boxers to fight in tournaments regulated by the Federation on many occasions in the past. It could not do otherwise without being in breach of its own Rules. Less than a month ago the Federation regulated and staged a show in Germany with the full support of the German Federation who permitted its own licence holders to take part.

We were attracted to the Luxembourg Federation because its safety record is second to none and it has personal injury insurance in place and strict procedures for protecting the safety of boxers. However, coupled with that, it is run by its members for its members. Managers, promoters and trainers are allowed to vote at the Company’s AGM and therefore have a real say as to how boxing is run. Whilst the Federation regulates the safety of boxing, it confines this to licensing, ringside supervision and the protection of the boxers in the ring, allowing the members freedom in other areas.

Therefore we entered into an agreement so that the Association is now the Federation’s representative in the UK and has been since March 12, 2012. I informed you of this and I informed you of the insurance and safety provisions when we met. This makes press release all the more surprising as I had been completely open with you as to what we were doing, the reasons why and the protection which would be afforded to the boxers under the Federation.

Moving onto the licensing of Haye v Chisora. Neither boxer is on the banned/suspension list. Chisora was sanctioned by your own body and having heard the evidence you decided to withdraw his licence rather than ban him. It is worth noting that this was under enormous pressure and scrutiny of the press.

We are surprised that you question whether these boxers should be licensed as they are both fit and well to fight, neither have a criminal conviction and neither have been banned by yours or any other sanctioning body. This is especially so when there has been not a squeak out of the Board over [Floyd] Mayweather, [Mike] Tyson, Scott Welch, Danny Williams and currently Scott Dixon to name but a few.

From the perspective of our Association, I am concerned about your attempt to intimidate your own members into not taking part. You do this in two ways. First, you claim that you will de-licence any member who takes part in the fight. This is unlawful and a breach of your own Rules. Secondly, you seek to limit the insurance for boxers who are licensed by the BBBoC and would ordinarily have the benefit of insurance even if they fight under a different sanctioning body.

This, in particular, is an extraordinary move for the BBBoC to seek to limit its own boxers’ insurance when they have paid license fees and taxes for the benefit of this insurance. I seek from you the confirmation of your insurers of their position – presumably you got this before issuing the press release and so can send it to me by return.

On behalf of our Association and the Federation, we require from you agreement that you will not seek to interfere with the fight and show. If this is not forthcoming by close of business on May 18, 2012 then the following will happen:

1) The membership of the Professional Boxing Promoters Association will move for a vote of no-confidence in the Board; and

2) The Federation of Luxembourg will consult its lawyers to start proceedings for restraint of trade that is if these proceedings have not by then been brought by another individual or company in the meantime.

I look forward to hearing from you and if you wish to meet and discuss matters, do let me know.

Yours sincerely

Bruce Baker

Chairman
Professional Boxing Promoters Association
Representatives Federation Luxembourgeoise de Boxe

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