By Mauricio Sulaimán
Son of José Sulaimán & WBC President

My visit to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was special for several reasons. In addition to being present at the boxing event in which Badou Jack and Ilunga Makubu fought in a fight of the year candidate and Tommy Fury defeated Jake Paul in a very entertaining match, I had a series of very important meetings with a view to the development of boxing in this part of the world; I spent unforgettable times in the company of beloved champions Mike Tyson, Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, Derek Chisora, Shawn Porter and Devin Haney.

I had the opportunity to experience various memorable social events that taught me the culture of this country, greatly enjoying the similarity of many things that I have lived since I can remember, because of my Syrian-Lebanese roots, and the blood that runs in our veins.

Waking up at five in the morning with the prayers that are heard throughout the city, enjoying sunrise and sunset with unique landscapes, and the delicious food and desserts of the region.

The night of the fight, I fell as I got out of the ring after stepping on an unevenness. I was very lucky, because I thought I had fractured or, at least suffered a sprain, but kept on walking throughout the event which ended at 3 am. I woke up in severe pain and unable to put my foot down. I was visited by Dr. Sethi, who was in charge of the card’s medical services, and he confirmed that it was not an injury to the bone, rather it was a tendon injury. He gave me medicine and bandaged me. He recommended that I should rest my leg as much as possible, but I had just begun my trip as I was heading to Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Qatar and Milan. Fortunately, in a couple of days I was perfect.

I left on my way to Abu Dhabi to participate as a speaker at the Leaders Conference, a group located in London which is in charge of uniting the world of sport through conferences to share ideas in various areas of interest.

The boxing panel was the first after the opening. I got to share the stage with our former cruiserweight world champion Anthony Bellew and Matchroom promoter Frank Smith.

Various topics of interest were discussed, and of course, the tendency to see fights by personalities outside of boxing, such as influencers, YouTubers and others, as well as amateurs, social responsibility and the future of boxing in the Middle East.

I held a series of meetings with different sports personalities, and I anticipate that new dynamics will be achieved for our WBC in the not too distant future.

What impressed me most was seeing Tony Bellew interact with the sports community. It is a pride to see our former champion have a wonderful life, after his distinguished ring career.

Tony is currently a commentator for DAZN and is a worthy representative of boxing outside of the ring. In addition to enjoying signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, he had long talks with everyone who approached him. His affection for the WBC, and his passion for the Green and Gold Belt, made me feel in the clouds on several occasions, when I heard his comments, in public and in private.

Tony reflected that without boxing, he would probably be in jail or dead; That is why, every opportunity he gets, he seeks to attract young people to the gym.

His last fight was against Oleksandr Usyk; he was going very well and up on the cards until the Ukrainian power puncher landed a powerful combination that sent him to the canvas and he lost by knockout. Bellew and I sent a video message to Usyk, who immediately answered, and a special communication was achieved between those who now call themselves best friends. That is the wonderful magic of boxing.

In Abu Dhabi, compared to Saudi Arabia, there is alcohol consumption, and they have restaurants and entertainment venues at the level of the best in the world with an active nightlife. Too bad jet lag and endless meetings and commitments didn’t allow me to take a walk around.

My next stop was Bahrain. An independent country which was the epicenter of the region for 300 years, with vast commercial power (based on trade) being pearls and dates their powerful exchange products; but that all changed three decades ago. The United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia discovered their oil and the dynamics changed.

The people are more than friendly and very hospitable. Coincidentally, it was the start of the F1 season, and I was invited for a couple of days to enjoy the experience of this sport to the full. I was surprised by the production and movement that is handled in the logistics of a Grand Prix. What tremendous pride to see a Mexican being the protagonist in a world as unique as this of motorsports! Checo Pérez is respected, admired and loved, and he will always be in the fight. Unfortunately, I traveled the same day as the race and could not attend such magnificent event. I was honored to be greeted by Mohammad Kooheji, who is a wonderful host.

I visited three gyms in Bahrain. The facilities are wonderful, especially when I saw a group of amateur boxers in the Round One Gym. There their coach, Tony, from England, acts as a father figure, and the twinkle in the eyes of these youngsters is the same as that seen in NY, Mexico, UK or East LA. Boxing is the same in all corners of the world. It unites.

DID YOU KNOW…?

Tony Bellew disputed the light heavyweight world championship as an official challenger and lost against Adonis Stevenson. Many people considered his career to be over. What no one understood were his serious problems to make weight; he persevered and worked his way up to official challenger in cruiserweight, and then came the title fight with Ilunga Makabu.

Bellew was hurt badly in the first round as he was floored by Makabu, but he courageously weathered it and in one of the greatest comebacks ever, he dramatically knocked out Makabu in the third round. He moved up to heavyweight and defeated favorite David Haye.

TODAY’S ANECDOTE

My dad dreamed of seeing boxing in the Middle East; he had many tries, but it was never achieved. On one occasion, Don José was with my mother, in NY, and the legendary boxing manager, Yamil Chade, insisted on making a very important appointment, because the Sheikh of Saudi Arabia wanted to see my father to bring a heavyweight championship to his country. They arrived in the room, Yamil entered with an Arab and his traditional clothing, and they talked for more than an hour, majestic plans, fortunes to bring boxing to the Middle East, aggressive and unimaginable plans to take over boxing.

Later, my mom went out, obviously shopping, and when she returned to the hotel, she asked my dad: “José, how did your meeting go? What are your feelings about such luxury and wealth that the Sheik showcased ?”

“Oh, Martha, my dear! The truth is that it didn’t make any sense, it was all nonsense, unreal; Yamil is always excited and I didn’t see seriousness in this guy, he even made me uncomfortable and suspicious,” my dad said.

My mom burst out laughing and told him: “Well, just as I was coming back, I ran into them on a corner in one of the streets eating hot dogs!” Imagine, the supposed Sheikh eating hot dogs off the cart on Fifth Avenue. Obviously, he never heard from the Sheikh again.

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