Sweet D Files: Boxing is a sport in crisis and last week was the final

PROMISSORY NOTE. What a week! Who would have thought that a failed drug test could bring a healthy and well-run sport to a halt? But it did, at least in the UK and just for the record, boxing is not a healthy or good way at all. It’s like a ship without a rudder without a captain. The scene of a major event is dragged three days before it is scheduled to take place because of a failed drug test, and its promoters will try to circumvent the verdict with lawyers and loopholes , will not soon be forgotten.

Boxing is a sport in crisis and not because of Conor Benn and the fact that he allegedly took a fertility drug. Instead, years of failing to deliver the battles audiences want, the absence of a unified governance structure around the world, and the manipulation of power by a few with deep pockets have saw its growth thwarted and the sport’s position eroded year by year. -five. In broader society, it’s called systematic decline, but boxing doesn’t really have a system, like a model, like a place of business.

When these types of failures clog things up it often moves into the ‘get it done as we go’ phase. Power of personality, or populism, becomes the rule. Their individuality and ability to generate revenue make up for the lack of infrastructure and any real serious order behind them.

In our sport, a famous boxer like Benn has failed a drug test and it is endlessly debated by those in and around him, his supporters forgetting that because of a sample poisoned for which he is now guilty until proven innocent. Fans become prosecutors and defenders, vloggers and talking heads plunge into constant debate on the topic, taking advantage of unexpected opportunities to attract new subscribers and donations, and other ways to Traditional media… well, it loves crisis.

Are there similar arguments if a 100 meter sprinter fails a test? Of course, not because there is a framework and rules in place, it is not negotiable. Sports are more important than athletes. It doesn’t matter if it’s Usain Bolt or Mo Farah, if they fail a test there will be an automatic ban, their career will end as they know it. No one will try to exploit loopholes to help them draw a lane in the final, nor offer explanations involving beef or wild boar.

There have been calls for stronger boxing regulation in the past, but they have come to believe as much as passengers on the London Underground want the air conditioning to work over the past 30 years. It’s perfectly reasonable to have but not important enough for travelers to stop using the service or apply any pressure to upgrade.

Listening to Chris Eubank Snr speak with pain and bitter mockery about his son, the sport’s promoters and dark operations, on the wonderful Stamina for Sale podcast, was sobering. It was an uncharacteristic outburst of emotions and opinions from Eubank, a man whose mental and physical toughness is ingrained in British boxing folklore.

It’s the lack of empathy, the inability to read the room, the spoiled mind and, ultimately, the blind commitment to putting money above everything, that seems to cut deep into him – not to mention Junior’s willingness to play the part. his role in all of it.

“They tried to kill my son,” he said. It can be doubted that Hearn or Kalle Sauerland ever strongly condemned their work. Many were quick to take advantage of Eubank’s past eccentricities against him, trying to get rid of him, as did Chris Eubanksy a little, a little weird. However, most fans know that serious injury or worse is not just a faint possibility in the sport: Eubank and his former rival, Nigel, are well aware of this fact. The health risks were in front of the eyes by the time Eubank Jnr-Benn was contracted and the regulations were made public.

It feels like boxing has reached its watershed moment. This ugly episode is playing in front of a global audience. It’s not simply about the effectiveness of drug testing and reducing the chances of this happening again. How does the sport want to move forward or be seen? What kind of person feels comfortable operating in its space? Who is in control?

To answer these questions positively, real and honest conversations will have to happen.

For starters, there might be an investigation into how anyone thinks it makes sense to sanction an unnecessary match where a career middleweight 33-year-old has to lose weight. its natural to face a welterweight class, from the very beginning. Don’t ignore the question of why the regulator is sitting on a failed drug test for nearly two weeks.

There has to be a degree of recognition that there are frequent problems in sports, and PED is one of them. Dr Usman Sajjad’s view, which appeared on video over the weekend, that 80-90% of boxers use doping and that it’s fairly easy to avoid arrest in the UK, is worrying. Even if he took those numbers out of the sky, this is a man who worked with Benn and continues to work with Tyson Fury.

C’s BBB seems to be investigating Sajjad, but it all feels a little too late and productive.

So let’s get back to the idea of ​​global governing bodies. To create coherence, consistency, standards, and more of accountability is there a need for an overarching body to arbitrate boxers’ health claims from the outset of controversial scoring? in the matches or not?

It would be complicated to conceive and possibly even harder to execute, but can the sport continue to flourish while Rome burns and ruthlessly punishes unnatural fights like Eubank Jnr- Can Benn compete?

This is the top level structure. One will be designed to professionalize and formalize the way the sport operates. On the ground, however, it probably won’t do much to weed out the spoilers, sensationalists and opportunities that boxing always invites in with a few questions asked. Mi casa Su casa afterall. The barrier to entry into the sport is always too low and leaves those in it, especially boxers, vulnerable to manipulation and exploitation by characters who think they can help or simply see a Easy signs to pick up from.

Alex Ariza, Manny Pacquaio’s former strength and conditioning coach, once said, “If you want to get rid of PEDs from boxing, get rid of the strength and conditioning coaches. These are among the most important roles in the sport right now, but they are not subject to any official criteria from sanctioning or licensing authorities, even though they are paid by boxer – like a coach, seconds, and a manager.

Yet another flaw. They are often used as a path to another kind of truth, a more favorable version for those who can afford it. Boxing as a whole saw it at work last week.