Quintin Jardine's blog

I invested £20 in the Saudi boxing card last night. Before every fight the announcer made it clear that the event was being overseen by the British Boxing Board of Control.

If that’s so, how the hell did they allow a guy to fly in from Africa, arriving less than 24 hours before his fight, and get in the ring against a world level opponent? When Martin Bakole, the Coatbridge Congolese, finally stepped on a set of scales in Riyadh he weighed 22 and a half stone, and was clearly nowhere near the fitness level of his opponent. When he was knocked over by a glancing blow to the top of the head, he could only just heave his bulk off the ground and his trainer chucked the towel straight in.

No governing body should have permitted that, least of all one that may be the oldest and most respected on the planet. I guess that everything has its price, including integrity.