EDITOR’S LETTER
The current system of multiple controlling bodies is not sustainable for long-term success
Chaos reigns behind the scenes
IT’S Boxing News’ policy to remove any fighters who fail drug tests from our rankings. They are always reinstated following the completion of any bans. But when Alexander Povetkin and Luis Ortiz [above] reoffended in recent years, we felt the right thing to do was remove any fighter guilty of multiple crimes for good. Once a cheat always a cheat is perhaps untrue but twice a cheat should be more than enough to be banned for life, surely.
Unfortunately, the sanctioning bodies were far more lenient. And not remotely consistent. Ortiz is ranked by the WBC and the IBF, whereas the WBA and WBO are yet to reinstate the Cuban who, 12 months ago, flunked his second test in three years. Povetkin, meanwhile, finds himself preparing for a September 22 shot at BN’S No.1 heavyweight, Anthony Joshua, after the WBA, WBO and IBF placed him in lofty positions in their ratings. The WBC are yet to rank the Russian following two failed tests in 2016.
The lack of consistency does not make our job an easy one. One of the most common questions we get asked on social media is why we don’t rank Povetkin when he’s being allowed into this country to fight Joshua for all three of his belts? And should Povetkin upset Joshua, what will we do then? I have already explained the answer to the first question but the second one is not so easy. My instincts tell me that we must continue to take a stand against the wave of cheats who pollute the sport irrespective of who they flatten. But are we really doing our job when we fail to rank active boxers? Furthermore, are we really doing our job if we rank boxers who should not be active?
What the whole mess highlights is the lack of overall control as sanctioning and governing bodies jostle for power. Not so much too many cooks but too many kitchens serving up all manner of horrors. One rule for one, another for another, and a disturbing lack of sense or morals from plenty. As last week’s BN interview with VADA’S Dr Margaret Goodman evidenced, it’s simply impossible in the current climate for a boxer who breaks the rules to receive a universal worldwide ban. There will always be a governing body to open their door, a sanctioning body to welcome them back and a promoter to stage the party.
It’s true that sports which do have one ruling body – FIFA in football, for example – are open to problems, the lack of democracy primarily and the issue of corruption also, but most sports do have one ruling body for very good reason. I struggle to see how the current worldwide boxing system could get much worse. One set of rankings and one set of rules is surely preferable to the current chaos.
The counter argument might be the mess AIBA find themselves in as the sport faces expulsion from the Olympics after suggestions of corruption blighted the 2016 Games. But what that has led to is promise of an overhaul. Amateur boxing realises, hopefully, it must change its ways. Boxing not being a part of the Olympics is almost unthinkable yet it’s a real possibility, and it might just be the tip of the iceberg. Certainly, the warning signs are there that the rest of the world is watching.
The weekend before Joshua fights a rule-breaker in a potentially recordbreaking event, we have Canelo Alvarez taking his place in a world middleweight championship showpiece with Gennady Golovkin in the same year he failed a test. Whatever your opinion on drugs in boxing, the previous sentence does not create the impression of a sport overly concerned with doing the right thing.
I agree that boxing is in a fine place in terms of exposure and talent at the top level, but the complications and inconsistencies behind the scenes could steal that exposure if chaos continues to reign.
IT was with great sadness to hear that Herol Graham’s partner, Karen Neville, lost her battle with cancer at the weekend. By all accounts the world lost a woman in a million. All at BN send Herol their condolences.