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Tonight's Contender card cancelled

Published:Tuesday | May 22, 2018 | 12:00 AMLeroy Brown/Gleaner Writer
Jeff Tabrizi

There will be no Wray & Nephew Contender show tonight. This has come about because the original opponent for Jamaica's Fabian Tucker, Canadian Jeff Tabrizi, had to pull out because of an injury, and the promoters have been unable to find a suitable replacement at short notice. The series will, however, resume next week.

The promoters had announced last Friday that word had been received that Tabrizi was unable to fight because of an injury, but that a replacement had been found.

The boxer slated to take his place was another Canadian, Marko Szalai. This did not work out, however, and another possible replacement changed his mind at the last moment.

In the circumstances, it was decided to cancel tonight's show and resume next Wednesday, May 30, at the Chinese Benevolent Association Auditorium on Old Hope Road.

Speaking for the promoters yesterday, Mark Kenny said: "We are sorry that we have to cancel this week, but we are looking for a suitable opponent for Tucker, and we are confident that we will find one in the next few days. The show will definitely resume next week."

The bout with Tucker will be the eighth and final preliminary contest in the Contender series. So far, boxers from Jamaica have won four matches and Canada three.

The eight quarterfinalists will then fight for a place in the semi-finals and then the finals. The winner of the series will be crowned Contender Welterweight Champion 2018 and take home prize money of $2 million. The runner-up gets $500,000, third place $250,000, and fourth $200,000.