World Boxing Association chiefs reported late on Thursday that an event to be staged this Saturday night had been scrapped.
Despite weeks of planning, alongside sanitation and COVID-19 testing, all of which were reported as negative the day before, the show has been canceled.
Releasing further information on the shelving of the show, WBA said the following:
“The boxing event that was scheduled to take place on Saturday in the Dominican Republic was canceled at the last minute following the recommendations of the government of the Caribbean country, according to Shuan Boxing Promotion.
“It is very important to respect the political and health authorities in the midst of the Covid-19 situation. So it was decided to follow the indications and suspend the event.
“Two regional titles of the World Boxing Association (WBA) were going to be at stake. However, we will wait for the right moment to carry out the event.
“It is worth mentioning that before the cancellation all the necessary measures had been fulfilled, supported by the safety protocol published by the WBA a few weeks ago.
WORLD BOXING ASSOCIATION BLOW
“The fighters had already undergone rapid tests of the Covid-19 with negative results. While the venue of the event, the Carlos Teo Cruz Coliseum, had been sanitized.
“The WBA supports the decision of the authorities, who know the situation first-hand. We hope that the boxing card can be set up in the future under the ideal conditions complying with all health measures.”
It’s certainly a blow to the WBA’s plans to get boxing going again before June. Las Vegas recently ratified a comeback for the sport on the world-famous strip.
Top Rank, under Chairman Bob Arum, will kick-off the restart on June 9th. A card is set to be fully confirmed in the near future.
