More information has been uncovered into the claim made by Jenny Sushe and her lawyer Gloria Allred into the case against Kubrat Pulev.
Sushe has claimed she was sexually assaulted by Pulev after the Bulgarian planted a kiss on the American reporter without consent.
Pulev has now hired his own lawyers to defend him. Sushe seeks damages of $600k, according to Marica in Pulev’s home country.
A hearing with the California State Athletic Commission will determine whether Pulev will be licensed to fight. Whilst separate proceedings will be brought against Pulev in order for Sushe to recoup $300k in legal fees and a further $300k.
If successful, the monies will far exceed the purse Pulev claimed with the win over Bogdan Dinu. The Dinu event was the catalyst for the whole incident unfolding. Pulev earned $250k for his triumph.
Giving an interview to Sushe during the weigh-in. And then after the fight, Pulev was obviously excited. Enough to feel the signs were there to go in for a smooch.
Not so, according to Sushe, who says Pulev’s advances were completely unsolicited.
A reported buttock squeeze added further fuel to Sushe’s claim. Pulev has since countered with a video showing the Las Vegas journalist enjoying his company with friends. This happened some time after the incident in question.
Giving one of Pulev’s entourage a lapdance, it’s since been astonishingly claimed in Bulgaria that Sushe ‘went to have sex with one of the men present in the toilet’. It’s not clear whether any sexual activity actually took place.
EVIDENCE
Due to the current high-profile nature of the #MeToo movement, Pulev is worried enough to be aggressive with his defense. Video evidence will be used alongside testimony from those witnesses in his team.
Determined not to fork out over half a million dollars to Sushe, Pulev’s lawyers will claim there was sufficient provocation from the claimant. Into the bargain, defense lawyers will state Pulev lost half a lite of blood during the Dinu fight. This fact may have clouded his judgement immediately after also taking punches to the head.
Added to that, Pulev’s team will state loss of earnings from a potential Anthony Joshua fight on June 1st. As World Boxing News made clear at the time, Pulev was scratched from the list as a direct result of this case being brought against him.
Andy Ruiz Jr. is now set to take the Joshua fight. It comes with a multi-million dollar purse. The previous largest sum earned by Pulev was $1.5m against Wladimir Klitschko.
