By Mauricio Sulaimán
President of the WBC – Son of José Sulaimán
I would like to begin by expressing my deepest condolences to William Haney, who has lost his mother, as well as to Devin Haney. Renee Jannah was his beloved grandmother and important part of his life. May she Rest in Peace and her memory be eternal.
The World Boxing Council has worked tirelessly for decades to find ways to make boxing safer for fighters, and a fortune has been invested in medical and scientific research and special studies to discover and understand what happens in the brain and body. What effects does this sporting activity have on boxers?
A large number of rules have been changed, and new ones have been implemented to minimize the risks involved when entering the ring. Even so, much still remains to be done, and this must be with the will and effort of all the members in the boxing industry. We are in this together – organizations, federations, local commissions, promoters, managers, trainers, advisors, and everyone involved one way or another in the activity of boxers, even media and fans.
This week, the decision of a boxing commission’s doctor prevented what could have been a terrible tragedy. Mexican boxer Angélica López Flores was going to travel to Toronto to face Natasha Spence. When it was confirmed that Angelica had lost 14 kilos in just 20 days, she was denied permission to box abroad. That considerable weight loss is very serious indeed, and there could have been a fatal accident.
The rules and measures that are implemented serve to protect the fighters, even from themselves. They are warriors who are capable of anything just to get into the ring to earn a living. Education needs to be reinforced at all levels. Coaches, matchmakers, promoters, and boxers need to understand that it is dangerous, and that common practices which seem normal can cause serious health problems, and even risk lives. Weight cutting, accepting fights while out of shape, living an unhealthy private life, etc.
The WBC has started the weight monitoring system as part of the Weight Management Program. The BoxMed app is being introduced as created by with Conexión Fácil, which specifically serves to require all champions and Top 15-rated fighters to report their weight once a month, thus preventing drastic sacrifices to lose a lot of weight in a very short time, which is extremely dangerous.
In Puerto Rico, the commission’s doctors also correctly canceled Amanda Serrano’s fight, finding a problem with irritation of the cornea of her eye, and even with a full stadium, they did not allow her to enter the ring, saving her without a doubt her eye, and her career.
Another issue of great concern is the consumption of cannabis, commonly known as marijuana, which today is legal in many countries, and especially in some U.S. states. This led to WADA, which is the World Anti-Doping Agency, not considering this substance as doping when it is out of competition. The consumption of alcohol and marijuana is legal, but this puts the physical integrity of athletes, especially boxers, at considerable risk.
Last week, the issue took on scandalous proportions when the fighter, the king of social networks, Ryan García, uploaded videos while he was smoking during the promotional tour for his fight against Devin Haney. This is one of those cases where the legal and the inappropriate collide head-on. There is no doubt that the consumption of alcohol and marijuana generates a very high risk. We are working very hard and diligently on this thorny issue. Ryan is a very nice person, has been in the light, and then often times in the dark. Now he has a time to shine as he will have the most important fight of his career against WBC super lightweight champion Haney.
Another risk factor in boxing, which we have worked to prevent, is unevenly matched fights. A fight between two boxers who are obviously and patently not of the same level is dangerous and is a gross deception to the public. Professional boxing is structured by the number of rounds: it starts with four, then there are levels of six, eight and 10 rounds. Championship fights are at 12.
It is the job of the boxing commission where the fight takes place to authorize the fights, responsibly seeking to ensure that they are properly and fairly balanced. Unfortunately, it is very common where this does not happen, and we watch the fights only to see in which round the favorite fighter will beat the other, and not to see who will win. This must be stopped. Coaches must not allow their fighters to go up into the ring hampered by a considerable competitive disadvantage. The promoters cannot allow this to happen and demand their matchmakers to produce even matches. The boxing commissions must accept them. The television stations should demand balanced fights from the promoters, the organizations not to sanction these titles, and even the press and fans raise their voices in protest.
DID YOU KNOW…?
The Englishman Peter Buckley is considered one of the worst fighters in history, since he fought 300 fights, of which he lost 256, including a streak of 86 consecutive defeats.
Another known case is that of Reggie Strickland, with 363 fights and 276 losses, a journeyman who traveled all over the United States to confront whoever they put in front of him. Totally unacceptable.
TODAY’S ANECDOTE
My dad traveled as supervisor of a WBC world championship fight to Venezuela in 1971, being general secretary of the World Boxing Council. As a side note, I remember my father telling the story about referee Mills Lane (RIP) arriving with him on the same flight in Caracas and being detained by the authorities because he was carrying a gun! Of course, we are talking about 1971. Guns were probably legal and Lane had little experience traveling abroad, so Don Jose had to convince the authorities, explaining in detail why they were in Venezuela. So, Mills entered, worked the fight, and was given his gun back upon departure.
Back to the topic of interest, it was the Filipino champion, Erbito Salavarria, against the local challenger and fan favorite, Betulio González. It was a 15-round war that ended in a draw, but something untoward happened that would change the destiny of sport and bring anti-doping to the fore.
A story that I heard Don José tell with great pride on many occasions: “Betulio was a full-fledged idol in Venezuela, but the fight was very tough. The Filipino champion resisted the attacks, and when it seemed that he would be knocked out, he came out and gained strength, was reinvigorated, and hurt Betulio. In the minute of resting period of the twelfth round, I realized that in the corner of Salavarria, they gave him a drink from a white bottle, something very strange. I immediately went to the corner and confiscated the bottle.
“The fight ended in a draw and it was a scandal. I took the bottle in my briefcase to Mexico, and immediately sent it to a laboratory. It turned out that it contained amphetamines. For that reason, we made an unprecedented decision and we withdrew recognition of Salavarria as a champion. Then we began to design a mandatory anti-doping testing program after each WBC world championship fight.”
I appreciate your comments at [email protected].
And in other news, spring is this month……
I expected something totally different, like the decisions which changed boxers trajectory through dubious scorecards. Lol. I was looking towards seeing a war in the comment section. Maybe we can still get it so I will go first.
Hagler was robbed against Leonard. Enjoy
As much as I would like to agree with you, Hagler’s slow start effectively cost him the fight. You just cannot give away the first 4 rounds against Sugar Ray. Leonard’s movement and speed were impressive and more so given the long lay-off.
Hagler was outclassed by a welterweight that had been out of the ring for almost 3 years. Learn son.
Ok my take on Hagler-Leonard is that Leonard did better than people expected him to do and got credit for it in several swing rounds. It shouldn’t have any weight on the judges but In such a close fight it made all the difference. I saw this when I was in middle school on closed circuit tv and have seen it on more than one occasion since. Today I say a draw, split or close unanimous decision for Hagler.
Ok let’s go! Whitaker was ROBBED against Jose Luis Ramirez and that was a WBC fight back in “88”. Damn I’m getting old.
No doubt about this highway robbery. The fight was not even close.
Canelo vs munguia, finally official! Chingue su madre pinche wuero, keeping fans on suspence!
NO FULL BEARDS IN RING !!! Shave or pack your lunch !
I’ve been complaining about that for a long time. It never used to be allowed and it shouldn’t be.
Lets see what weight rehydration clause,”handicap” , and /or “$cript ” , Mungia had to agree with to get the fight with Canelo. I am sure we will find out after the “fight”.
One of my favorite 3 Stooge shows is “Punch Drunks”. Curly is a boxer and when he hears the “pop goes a weasel” tune he goes crazy and knocks everyone out.
How about enforcing the mandatory status of Benevidez so him and Canelo can fight, instead of talking about a bunch of nonsense. That’s a decision that people care about. Instead of having him face pansy mandatories like Yildirim. Practice what you preach.
One of the things I would like to see, is that if 3 judges have the scores where the losing boxer can’t win win the remaining rounds, and won’t even have a draw on one of the score cards, the match would be over, such as a ten round fight, and all three judges have it 6-0. This might at least prevent more wear and tear on boxers, even the winning one.
Why not have a fight, if it is a split decision, or majority decision. be reviewed. 3 more judges look at the fight, television of course. If in the case of teh split decision, the boxer who initially lost, wins a unanimous or majority decision, he ends up winning the match, either keeping his title, or winning it.
– There is always the chance of a KO which is why the fights should go the distance.
– If a fighter’s corner feels that the situation is hopeless, they can throw in the towel and save their fighter for another day.
There are some crucial changes in boxing regarding the safety and health of the boxers that, after almost 60 years of following this sport, I am still waiting for to happen, and now with modern technology, it should be easier to implement them, but nothing has happened so far. Just words and ignorance are what I have seen as the most relevant about this issue.
Reggie Strickland was a good boxer. Very good. And Peter Buckley, with 256 losses, was only stopped 10 times. That should tell you something about his skill. Both fought top level opposition. Win-loss records alone don’t always tell the whole story.
Seriously, I believe fighters like Buckley and Strickland should be commended.
A good decision to change boxing would be that Mr. Sillyman and “We Be Criminals” WBC finally go away for good…….
Your only research was how to put money in your pocket. Your a crook, your family has lived like kings on the blood and sweat of fighters!
Mauricio is a corrupt fool for attacking professional opponent Reggie Strickland. Reggie was slick and never took a beating in his life; he also saved countless shows throughout the Midwest by sometimes taking a fight on a minute’s notice. Meldrick Taylor took more punishment in his first fight with Chavez than Strickland did in 380 fights!
Mauricio knows nothing about club shows, which are the lifeline of boxing. All Mauricio knows are title fights, so he can squeeze as much money out of them, thus enabling him to sit on his fat ass and write lengthy articles without ever having a real job in his life!
His organization helped make weight draining more common with all the extra divisions. Harder to do that when there were only eight divisions instead of one for every three pounds.
lets hope mungia doesn’t “forget how to fight ” or “throws punches in the air, like kovalev ” when he “fights ” canelo. lets hope its a real fight and not the “usual show” from the last couple of years.
And what about coming into the Ring Without a Beard !!!!