WBU boss says BBBoC should be investigated by Scotland Yard; Rogan offered US option

Northern Irish heavyweight Martin Rogan has been invited to challenge for the WBU title in the United States after the British Boxing Board of Control this week refused to recognise the organisation and allow Rogan fight for its belt in Belfast next month.

Rogan had been scheduled to face Panamanian Luis Andres Pineda at the Odyssey Arena on October 27 but on Thursday the Belfast-born fighter was informed by the UK’s governing body for boxing that it would not sanction the contest.

He has now been invited to the United States to contest the WBU heavyweight title by the organisation’s chairman Dan ‘Moose’ Lewis.

Devastated Rogan, who had himself paid licence fees to promote the October 27 show, was last night considering switching his title aim to the US, possibly in Boston, home of Irish heavyweight Kevin McBride, or Atlanta Georgia, home of Dan ‘Moose’ Lewis.

In a statement, Lewis said: “The title fight featuring Martin Rogan of Belfast will take place in the United States by year’s end. Due to the British Boxing Board of Control’s (BBBofC) decision to not reinstate the WBU as a recognised sanctioning body, the only viable alternative is to stage the event in the USA.”

Lewis said he had worked tirelessly for the past three years to restructure the WBU and continue its lineage after its founder passed away. He added: “I am disappointed with the decision of the BBBofC to not reinstate recognition of the WBU and do not fully understand its decision. As everyone knows, politics and underhandedness plays a huge part of who receives the opportunity to fight for a world title.

“How they could deny Martin Rogan the chance of a lifetime to become the first true Irish world heavyweight champion in history mystifies me. (Well, he wouldn't be, would he? - Ed.)

"The fans in Ireland want this and Mr Rogan has jumped through all the rings to get to this point.

“Martin Rogan has all the qualities of a world champion; he just needs the belt to verify it. If he was successful in capturing this belt, I know for a fact he wanted to fight Tyson Fury in Belfast.

“There is not a facility large enough to hold the number of people who would want to see this fight (Rogan-Fury) in person. There is no doubt in my mind that if he (Rogan) would align himself with a promoter in the UK, this WBU heavyweight title would be approved by every governing body in the UK.

“He is his own man and that is a problem - he won’t sign his life away. Let me ask anyone out there - who oversees the boxing titles the BBBofC sanctions? As a commission, they compete with the sanctioning bodies - which is not good business - yet they deny a qualified boxer awWorld championship fight in his own country? They should be investigated by Scotland Yard.

“Anyway, this fight will be moved to the USA and should Martin Rogan be the WBU world champion, I want everyone with a drop of Irish blood in their body to write the BBBofC asking them why this was not contested in their homeland.

“The loss of Ireland will thrill the Irish people in the United States. While I look forward to this championship fight, I wish to express my disappointment to all of Ireland and the WBU will not stop the fight to sanction world title contests in the UK, you have my word.

“The WBU and I ask for the support of Martin Rogan’s fans to speak out about this travesty and injustice. When Mr Rogan returns to Belfast, I will be there with him and we will have a press conference with film clips of this historic moment. Pray for change in the corrupt world of professional boxing. May God bless Ireland, today and always.”

Quite frankly, the proliferation of supposed governing bodies has been the development most damaging to boxing over the last two decades. As nice as they are, when the likes of Carl Greaves, Lee McAllister and Takaloo are referred to in the printed press as former world champions, things are way out of hand.

The BBBoC are not only doing the right thing, they need to do it in relation to more bodies and should have done it twenty years ago.