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Boxing: Froch admits prolonging title fight

Dunya News

British boxing has taken another body blow; this time involving former WBC champion Carl Froch.

Only days after the scandalous behaviour of heavyweights David Haye and Dereck Chisora in Germany, it has been reported that Froch “admitted” to delaying his knockout victory over South African Ruben Groenewald so that family friends could make money from betting on the bout.The BBC’s website, bbc.co.uk, has run a story about an incident that could turn into another scandal.Froch, who held the WBC super-middleweight title, but fought Groenewald for the Commonwealth belt, said on BBC Radio Nottingham he could have stopped the South African earlier than he did.He had predicted before the bout that he would win in the fifth round. Bets were then made that the bout would end in the fifth.Speaking on radio about his autobiography, Froch said he had “deliberately” prolonged the fight and had done so on other occasions, too.The British Boxing Board of Control could be forced to investigate the matter.The board, already expected to stamp on Chirosa for his actions before, during and after the WBC heavyweight fight against Vitali Klitscko, could call on Froch to explain his comments.But because he has retired, Froch may escape sanction.Froch has been quoted as saying what he did was not illegal. He said he did not gamble, but his brothers and friends did well, financially, by betting on his fights.In the fight against Groenewald he “held up” his opponent in the fourth round instead of knocking him out there and then.However, Froch has since said his comments on radio should not be taken seriously. In hindsight, he perhaps should not have said what he did, he added.He felt there was a difference between “predicting” and “match fixing”.
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