We will agree on the fact that we will never know the whole truth. And that we will not know all the circumstances that led to the cancellation of the December 1 boxing gala at Place Bell in Laval.
So we’re going to rely on what we were told yesterday. Yvon Michel and Kim Clavel held a press conference via Zoom. Kim Clavel looked like she was dying. She was dressed a bit like Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and seemed to be suffering a lot from this bad flu.
The day before, during the evening, when her temperature remained at more than 40 degrees, she had called 811. She hung up after a wait of 45 minutes. Its manager Stéphan Larouche and its coach Danielle Bouchard went to her apartment to reassure her.
Last spring, a title fight for Clavel was delayed at the last minute because she caught COVID-19. So it’s two in two for viruses.
A LOSS OF $100,000
Yvon Michel estimates the loss incurred by postponing the fight to January 13 at $100,000. The promoter evenko proved to be an excellent partner and was content to postpone the contract for a few weeks.
“But we had to pay for plane tickets and hotel rooms as well as per diems for 13 or 14 people. It’s very expensive with inflation. All our programs and infographics for publicity must be destroyed and we will have to prepare everything for January 13th. Fortunately, amateurs do not ask for refunds. This was also the case during the postponement of the fight between Lucian Bute and Jean Pascal. Moreover, in addition to the tickets already purchased during the postponement, a second sale had allowed us to reach 22,000 spectators in the Bell Centre, ”promoter Yvon Michel explained yesterday afternoon.
In fact, Friday January 13 is a much better date for a boxing gala. The Canadiens aren’t on the schedule and people don’t have to worry about their jobs the next morning.
KIM WILL BE READY
Stéphan Larouche, Colonel Parker of Kim Clavel, assures that his protege will not be too financially penalized.
“She will have a few extra costs for training, but nothing dramatic. It will not be easy, however, to take the necklace back, but others have done it before her. Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall had their fight delayed five weeks by the death of Queen Elizabeth II,” the Colonel said.
And they offered the best women’s boxing fight in history.
SIMON KEAN INJURED IN BACK
Moreover, Shawinigan has just lost a big chunk for the December 16 supergala.
Simon Kean, who had already suffered from back pain for a few months, overdid it in training and aggravated his injury. We had to cancel his fight.
But with Arslanbek Makhmudov, the great Mary Spencer and Steven Butler and the other fights, the fun will be in place.
It also appears that Léo McDonald, Maxime Dubois and Yanick Dubeau will be present.
In addition, Simon Kean received his construction contractor’s license. He studied almost every night for months.
He won’t be badly caught there.
Finally some good news for Oscar
Oscar will be able to relax a bit and offer Christmas presents to his many children. Because, you see, any world champion of bridgerweightWhatever it is, “Kaboum” has not fought for 15 months. As the “Moose” would say, it’s been the end of the month that comes quickly to you!
Efe Ajagba will be his opponent. Marc Ramsay knows him well, having turned down a $250,000 offer a few months ago to face Arslanbek Makhmudov. The 6’6” big Nigerian didn’t want to come and fight in Canada.
Moreover, at the time, Top Rank had warned Eye of the Tiger Management that Oscar Rivas would be a possibility as an opponent.
Ajagba has only one fight rated four stars by Boxrec. The one against Frank Sanchez. Fight he lost by unanimous decision.
JANUARY 14 IN VERONA
The 10-round clash will be presented in Verona, near Syracuse. Oscar Rivas beat Bryant Jennings there four years ago with a technical knockout in the 12th and final round.
It will be good for the finances of Rivas, who is expected to fetch US$300,000 for this fight shown on ESPN. It’s better than an ordinary scholarship in Poland.
It is almost certain that Alain Gravel, vice president of Trevi swimming pools, will attend the fight at the Verona casino. “Kaboum”, which is nice as anything, has a lot of fans. He deserves to fight more often. Especially since at 34, the years quickly tumble in boxing.