For a brief moment, the heated exchange between Ben Shalom and Frank Warren took attention away from the final weigh-ins for the Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol showdown. Present in Riyadh, the two promoters locked horns as their charges, Chris Eubank Jr. and Kamil Szeremeta took center stage.

The two middleweights will duel out for the middleweight IBO title on the undercard. As he stared at the fight ahead, Ben Shalom sat down to share his side of the story on what transpired between him and the Queensberry honcho.

Ben Shalom: Doing what needed to be done

So, according to Shalom, the issue perhaps stemmed from his presence on the stage, particularly standing alongside his fighter. The BOXXER head told ‘Boxing King Media’, “I’ve been blocked from being around my fighters all week and going on stage.” According to him, most of the time he usually respects the role of other promoters, acknowledging that they have obligations to be by their fighter’s side.

At the venue, he was playing the same role, a part of his job as a promoter of Eubank Jr. Perhaps a few expected him to stay on the sidelines. But apparently, he wasn’t willing to, and it led to a surprising reaction. “I think the anger was that I didn’t just stand on the side and let them, you know, be with my fighters; I stood in the middle, and my fighters pretend I don’t exist, and you know that’s what the result was; that’s what the reaction was, and it was unbelievable,” said Shalom.

Despite the tension, Ben Shalom maintained that he had been calm throughout the week, confident in his team’s preparations. He added, “If that was my granddad, I’d be telling him to calm down, and I mean that in a respectful way. It’s way over the top; his blood pressure must be through the roof.”

Is this really called for?

Usually, after a weigh-in, it’s fairly conventional for fighters to have a face-off. So the promoters often take the opportunity to stand in between. In this particular case, as Chris Eubank Jr. walked towards Szeremeta, Ben Shalom went ahead, coming from Warren’s right to be with ‘Next Gen’. As a result, he blocked the Queensberry boss’ view. The act apparently angered Frank Warren, who reacted by pushing Shalom. As the fights went back after the face-off, the two promoters appeared arguing.

Later in the interview, Ben Shalom seemed quite critical of the promoter’s role on the stage. He suggested that the focus should be more on the fighters than the promoters. Shalom believes that the promoters should be standing up for their charges. Hence, he felt quite justified stepping in for his fighter, even though it caused such a sharp reaction. The exchange understandably drew considerable reactions from fans.

Incidentally, the latest squabble follows a much-publicized incident. During the press conference, Eubank Jr. had criticized a slew of promoters. Chris Eubank‘s son joined Ben Shalom’s BOXXER team a few months ago. No prizes for guessing; the tirade didn’t go down too well with Warren, who warned about pursuing legal action.

What is your view on Ben Shalom’s thoughts on promoters staying out of the limelight for their respective fighters?