“Absolutely Shameless”: WBC President’s Delivery of Carl Weathers and Kazuki Anaguchi Death News Receives Scathing Response From Boxing World

Currently, the world of boxing is navigating a challenging period as we witness some tragic demises. On Friday, Japanese boxer Kazuki Anaguchi passed away at the age of 23 due to a subdural hematoma sustained in his December 26 fight in Tokyo. That is not the only death in the boxing world this week.

On Thursday, February 1, American actor and former athlete Carl Weathers, aged 76, also passed away. Weathers, the ‘Rocky’ star known for his role as Apollo Creed, became a central figure in the franchise after the first Rocky film. His portrayal of Creed showcased a complex character, blending athleticism, charisma, and sportsmanship. It is no wonder that his demise was hard for the fans to digest. The WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman expressed his sadness in an X post but fans found the post quite problematic. What did Sulaiman say that was so wrong that fans are now furious with him?

Mauricio Sulaiman Expresses Tone-Deaf Condolences

Mauricio Sulaiman on the same X post also chose to mention Tyson Fury‘s fight against Oleksandr Usyk being cancelled among the other tragic news. The caption on the post read “A sad and difficult day in boxing as Japanese boxer Kazuzki Anaguchi died from injuries sustained during his fight in December, Tyson Fury was cut during sparring this Ring of fire is postponed and Carl Weathers who played Apollo Creed died at 76.”

‘The Gypsy King’ sustained injuries on his right eye during a sparring session while he was preparing for his much-anticipated bout. The bout was postponed again and fans were disappointed. Sulaiman, being a big figure found it disheartening for boxing fans all over the world. However, Sulaiman mentioning all three incidents in the same post did not sit quite right with the fans.

Fans find WBC president’s remarks insensitive

Sports Editor for ESPN, Mike Coppinger was among the first ones to call out the WBC president for drawing the rather insensitive parallel. “I mean, it’s unfortunate Fury was cut but not sure that should be grouped in the same category as two people who died, one of them tragically from ring injuries …” he said, asking if they all truly fit into the same category.

A fan asked him to delete the post altogether. “Please delete this. You can’t compare two people passing away to a fight being cancelled,” the fan urged Sulaiman.

“Absolutely shameless,” remarked one user.

A user stated that Sulaiman did not have a well-developed brain. “Your brain is underdeveloped, very sad,” he said.

Boxing Kingdom, a well-known boxing news account defended the WBC President.

“Everyone relaxe. He meant well. The delivery was off,” wrote the channel.

Fans over all were quite disappointed with the way Sulaiman chose to express his sadness.

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Do you agree with the fans? Or do you think it is less of an issue? Let us know in the comments below.