Mayhem after mix of errors

This was not a good week for boxing.I accompanied Dereck Chisora to the British Boxing Board of Control's HQ for the hearing concerning the events in Germany last month. Chisora's licence has been withdrawn by the Board but that does NOT mean he has been banned for life from boxing. He has the right to re-apply for his licence at any time and also has the right to appeal. What was proven beyond all doubt at the hearing was that Chisora did not throw the first punch at the post-fight Press conference, which led to the ugly scenes where David Haye hit Chisora in the face with a bottle in his hand. Everybody involved in the promotion, including myself, has to take some responsibility for the terrible events broadcast worldwide. Yet there were many problems behind the scenes which contributed to the unnecessary friction and helped lead to the final disgraceful scenes. One of my biggest grievances was the total lack of support of Board president and chairman Charlie Giles in Germany. Giles was supposed to be in Germany to represent the interests of Chisora and the other British licence-holders on the bill. But it was revealed for the first time at the hearing that his expenses to be there were not even being paid by the Board but by the WBC. If he was there on behalf of the WBC, who was representing British interests? I feel his total negligence and lack of professionalism was a big contributory factor in the events. Giles did not even provide a written report of what happened to the Board, which many who were in attendance found odd. He also performed another vanishing act at the hearing on Wednesday. Chisora's barrister, Jonathan Crystal, wanted to call him as a witness but was told he was unavailable. So why did the stewards not insist he was made available? Most sports governing bodies, such as the FA, have independent groups to hear complaints and misconduct charges. But the Board both presses charges and hears complaints. It is a bit like the police charging and judging you. The WBC are due to hold their own hearing on March 21 to decide whether or not to keep the $100,000 that they held back from Chisora's purse. In effect, Chisora is being tried for the same misconduct twice. It is a ridiculous state of affairs. Ultimately, had Chisora not had warnings from the Board for previous incidents, he may have kept his licence.