Frank Warren has revealed what he has heard about the claims that a fight on the card featuring Daniel Dubois v Joseph Parker was cancelled due to a poisoning.
On Saturday night, arguably the greatest boxing card in history is set to get underway in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev will rematch Dmitry Bivol in the main event of the evening, with IBF heavyweight champion Dubois facing former champion Parker in the co-main event.
However, the card was thrown into chaos on Wednesday morning after a top fighter was forced to withdraw from his bout due to illness, leading to his father claiming that he had been 'poisoned' by his opponent.
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Ahead of the heavyweight clash between Dubois and Parker, WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson was originally booked to defend his belt against title challenger Floyd Schofield.
However, the British Boxing Board of Control pulled Schofield from the card stating that he was ill, although the 22-year-old's father later claimed on social media that a massage lady working for Stevenson had 'poisoned' his son.
And now, legendary boxing promoter Warren, who represents several of the big names on the fight card, has weighed in on the situation and revealed what he has heard about the alleged poisoning.
"All I know is he was taken to hospital and they kept him in for tests and as a result of that, the board of control have made, and I think quite rightly, the decision that he should be out of the fight," Warren told Ring Magazine.
"Now somebody being in hospital, if they come out and say they were ok and something went wrong, how do we explain that as a sport?
"He's made a few statements, I've seen all that stuff, but at the end of the day, it's the boards decision, that's where we are and we're looking for another opponent."
Since news of Schofield's withdrawal broke on Wednesday, rumours have suggested that Stevenson will remain on the card and defend his lightweight belt against British contender Josh Padley.
The 29-year-old Yorkshireman currently boasts a flawless record of 15 wins and zero losses, but will face his toughest fight to date if he were to be booked against Stevenson on short notice.
Topics: Boxing, Joseph Parker
Ben McCrum