Boxing urged to act after Ritchie’s death

Three days after saying goodbye to his boxing buddy, Dwight Ritchie, former world champion Will Tomlinson has pleaded for change in the sport he loves.

While acknowledging Ritchie’s death this month as a tragic and freak occurrence, Tomlinson, 33, believes boxing needs to improve in many areas if it is going to survive.

“Dwight’s death highlighted how fragile life can be when you are participating in a sport where the name of the game is to hurt your opponent and to prepare for that daily in training,” said Tomlinson, who held the IBO world super featherweight title from 2011-14.

“As they say, you don’t play boxing.

“It was so sad at Dwight Ritchie’s funeral when some of his interviews were replayed, where he said he didn’t care about his legacy, only that his kids knew that he loved them and would always be there for him – everyone at that funeral would have thought how sad it was that he won’t be.”

Tomlinson retired in 2016 after 25 wins and just three losses, although two of those defeats came via knockouts in two of his last four fights.

He has maintained his health in retirement and limits the amount of alcohol he consumes, but is fully aware his future remains uncertain.

“I was given the all-clear on my brain after retirement in 2016 in terms of degeneration, but I haven’t had any testing since,” Tomlinson said.

“That movie Concussion proves none of us are out of the woods for a long time.

“Fighters, trainers and promoters must unite to ensure the highest of standards.

“I watched Kostya Tszyu fighting Ricky Hatton in 2005 when Kostya’s trainer, Johnny Lewis, stopped the fight after the 11th round. That was an example of a trainer doing the right thing by his boxer.

“Or when Lewis advised Jeff Harding to retire because he was worried about how much punishment he was absorbing in his fights, despite being the light heavyweight champion of the world.

“Jeff Horn’s fight against Michael Zerafa went for far too long, meaning either the referee or Horn’s corner should have acted sooner.

“The Victorian Professional Boxing Combat Sports Board can be even more diligent in ensuring every official never makes an oversight, because one oversight can change a boxer’s life.

“A referee, for instance has to be able to read a fight, to know when a boxer is done.”