Boxing
DOCTOR RECOMMENDS REVOLUTIONARY MOUTHGUARD FOR ANTHONY JOSHUA
Following the recent tragedies on boxing rings which is highlighted by four deaths, a professor of medicine, Mike Loosemore is spearheading development of the technology that can help stall fatal injuries.
According to Daily Mail, a chip inserted into a mouthguard to provide live analysis of blows to the head. The initiative has reportedly received the backing of the British Boxing Board of Control.
On that account, Anthony Joshua’sdoctor wants the
heavyweight to use the revolutionary new mouthguard that could help boxing’s
fight against fatal head injuries.
Professor Mike Loosemore, who is also GB Boxing’s chief medical officer, is spearheading development of the technology and hopes it could be introduced into Joshua’s camp after his upcoming rematch with Andy Ruiz Jnr.
Boxing has been rocked by four deaths in recent months. American Patrick Day passed away last week after suffering a brain injury, and Russian Maxim Dadashev, Argentina’s Hugo Santillan and Bulgaria’s Boris Stanchov have also all died since July from injuries sustained in the ring.
The latest tragedy came just weeks after Joshua’s trainer Rob McCracken claimed he knew the heavyweight was concussed in his defeat by Ruiz in June.
And Loosemore is advocating new technology which uses a chip inserted into a mouthguard to provide live analysis of blows to the head, sending the data to a nearby computer.
‘From a personal point of view, I’d like to get Anthony involved in using this,’ Loosemore said of the technology developed by Swansea-based company Sports & Wellbeing Analytics. ‘The product is what we’ve been looking for, really. We’ve been looking for something where we can measure the real impact on the head.
‘I could see it being used in boxers’ sparring. If they take some heavy shots, you could call the sparring off for the day or you could rest them up for a couple of days or a week, or until they’ve made a recovery. It would give us a better idea of the concussive blows the boxer was taking during sparring because at the moment we have really no idea.
‘We haven’t had those discussions with Anthony yet so I can’t say whether he’d be interested or not but I’d like to get him involved.’ From there, Loosemore hopes the technology — which has been trialled in rugby — could also be rolled out on fight night, providing coaches and ringside doctors with invaluable live insight into the health of each fighter.
‘You may be able to get to the point where you can say, ‘He’s had a certain impact, therefore it’s time to stop the fight’,’ Loosemore added. ‘It could change the dynamics of the way the fight was measured because you’d be able to tell if someone was taking a lot of heavy impacts or if they’d taken a very hard impact.’
Loosemore’s ambitions to introduce the technology have received the backing of the British Boxing Board of Control.
‘Anything that looks after boxers is good so we would be supportive of anything like that,’ BBBoC general secretary Robert Smith told Sportsmail. ‘Mike is a good man, I know him really, really well. We will be very supportive of anything he’s doing, absolutely.’
The technology is ready to use and the hope is that one day the mouthguards would be tailored to individual fighters and their own concussion threshold.
The Nigerian boxing landscape has been thrown into uncertainty following reports that the Nigerian Boxing Federation (NBF) is considering steps to regulate professional boxing—an area traditionally overseen by the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBBofC).
Reacting swiftly, the NBBofC has dismissed the reports as misleading, warning that any such move could destabilise the established structure of the sport in the country.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Board reaffirmed its statutory authority as the sole body responsible for the regulation, control, and sanctioning of professional boxing in Nigeria.
“The attention of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control has been drawn to insinuations that another body intends to assume regulatory authority over professional boxing in Nigeria. We wish to categorically state that such claims are unfounded and should be disregarded,” the statement read.
The Board stressed that the NBF’s mandate is confined strictly to amateur boxing, in line with global sports governance frameworks, and does not extend to the professional ranks.
NBBofC President, Rafiu Ladipo, warned that any attempt by another organisation to assume control of professional boxing could trigger administrative conflicts, weaken regulatory standards, and expose athletes to unnecessary risks.
The Board also cautioned promoters, managers, and boxers against engaging with unauthorised bodies claiming regulatory powers.
“We advise all promoters, managers, and boxers to remain vigilant and not be misled by such insinuations. The NBBofC remains fully committed to its responsibility of regulating and sanctioning professional boxing in Nigeria in accordance with established rules and international best practices,” the statement added.
Observers within the boxing community note that clarity in regulatory authority is critical—not only for safeguarding athletes but also for ensuring fair competition and maintaining Nigeria’s credibility within the global boxing ecosystem.
For now, the NBBofC has reiterated its resolve to continue overseeing professional boxing in the country, even as stakeholders await further clarification on the reported position of the NBF.
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Oleksandr Usyk will put his WBC heavyweight title belt on the line against Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza, Ring Magazine announced on Friday.
The Ukrainian three-times undisputed champion holds the IBF, WBA and WBC titles after vacating the WBO belt.
The 39-year-old has not boxed since beating Britain’s Daniel Dubois at London’s Wembley Stadium last July.
“I respect his (Verhoeven’s) journey – he’s truly the ‘King of Kickboxing’. But this is boxing – a different game, with its own rules and its own kings,” said Usyk, who has a 24-0 record.
“I’m ready and looking forward to meeting him in the ring. It’s going to be a unique experience for both of us, and I know the fans are excited too. A big night is coming.”
The ‘Glory in Giza’ fight will be streamed live on DAZN.
“I spent 12 years as the undisputed heavyweight kickboxing champion and accomplished everything I set out to accomplish,” Verhoeven, 36, told The Ring.
“But staying at the top for that long didn’t take away from the hunger; it strengthened it. Usyk is the undisputed champion in boxing. That’s the kind of challenge that motivated me. Undisputed versus undisputed.”
Verhoeven has sparred in the past with former champion Tyson Fury and had one professional bout in 2014, which he won by a knockout.
-Reuters
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Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will face off in a professional rematch at the Sphere in Las Vegas in September, with the bout streaming globally on Netflix, the fighters and promoters announced on Monday.
The fight marks Mayweather’s return from retirement and will be the first professional boxing match held at the Sphere.
Mayweather, who holds a perfect 50-0 record with 27 knockouts, defeated Pacquiao in their 2015 encounter dubbed the “Fight of the Century.”
That bout generated a record 4.6 million pay-per-view buys and a $72 million live gate at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
“I already fought and beat Manny once. This time will be the same result,” Mayweather said in a statement.
Pacquiao, whose record stands at 62-8-3 with 39 knockouts, expressed confidence he would hand Mayweather his first professional loss.
“I want Floyd to live with the one loss on his professional record and always remember who gave it to him,” the Filipino fighter said.
The rematch will stream to Netflix’s more than 325 million subscribers worldwide, continuing the platform’s push into live boxing.
The streaming platform has recently broadcast several high-profile fights, including Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson, which the company said drew 108 million live global viewers
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