Friday’s MTK Global Golden Contract Postponed

Early Tuesday The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBoC) has announced that all events in March that fall under its jurisdiction have now been cancelled due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.

“With regard to the above [Covid-19] and the statement made by the Prime Minister Boris Johnson, all public tournaments under the jurisdiction of the British Boxing Board of Control are unfortunately cancelled,” Robert W. Smith, general secretary of BBBoC announced in a statement. “Further consideration of the matter will take place at the beginning of April.”

Among those shows slated throughout March was the upcoming MTK Global Contract light-heavyweight semifinal that was scheduled to take place this Friday, as well as 16 shows total across the board by the BBBoC.

Here is the statement from MTK Global via pres release confirming the postponement:

“We would like to place on record our thanks to our broadcast partners at Sky Sports and ESPN+ as well as the British Boxing Board of Control, all officials and staff who worked so hard towards putting the show on amid challenging circumstances.

Throughout the build-up, the interests of the fighters were at the forefronts of both our minds and our efforts to go ahead in the knowledge each and every pay-day is important for them and the families they provide for.

The ongoing pandemic in the UK means that the full weight of medical care must be thrown behind the NHS and we fully support all decisions taken to ensure people get the best advice, treatment and care as soon as possible.

The #GoldenContract light-heavyweight semi-finals will take place at a later date and we look forward to bringing big-time boxing back to as many venues and as many TV screens as quickly as we can. In the meantime, we hope you all stay safe.”

These cancellations are only the beginning, as this virus has had global effects all over. What happens from here is anyone’s guess? But, they won’t include live boxing in the foreseeable future.