BEN SHALOM is facing a downturn in his fortunes after a successful start with Sky Sports in 2022.
The CEO of Boxxer promoted fights such as Chris Eubank Jr-Liam Williams, Amir Khan-Kell Brook, and Claressa Shields-Savannah Marshall last year. In addition to those, Shalom played a part in helping Natasha Jonas have her best 12 months of her career.
Now, in June 2023, fighter pull-outs are causing chaos with the Boxxer schedule. Tonight, Frazer Clarke will be the main attraction against Mariusz Wach at York Hall, replacing the original main event between Adam Azim and Aram Fanyan. Azim had to withdraw due to an infected left hand.
Liam Smith withdrew twice from his rematch against Chris Eubank Jr, and Josh Taylor-Jack Catterall 2 was canceled when Taylor suffered a foot injury.
“It sums up our past six months,” Shalom commented on Azim’s injury in an interview with Boxing News.
Another fight that recently fell apart was the British cruiserweight title fight between champion Mikael Lawal and challenger Isaac Chamberlain. Lawal had to pull out due to a medical issue. The fight had been scheduled for the Lawrence Okolie-Chris Billam-Smith undercard in Bournemouth last month.
“I think that fight will still happen,” Shalom told BN.
“I’m not going to discuss what happened, but it has to be the next fight, or Mikael will have to vacate. We want to see that fight. We’ve had Mikael since he won a tournament in 2018 or 2019, and he’s won the British title. He’s done really well, but this was a huge fight for him and a big fight for Isaac Chamberlain, who must be the unluckiest cruiserweight I know,” he added.
[He] takes fights whenever they are offered. He took Lawrence Okolie possibly at the wrong time and Chris Billam-Smith at the wrong time after a layoff, then gets his opportunity at the British title,” Shalom explained.
“Fighters get injured, and we are left with a decision. We receive a lot of criticism for fighters getting injured, but ultimately, we have to proceed with the shows. We have responsibilities to our fighters. Fighters like Isaac Chamberlain, through no fault of their own, go through a training camp and don’t get that opportunity. Fortunately, we managed to secure Dylan Bregeon for Friday night, who is a very good late replacement opponent.”
Shalom also revealed that he expects the Lawal-Chamberlain fight to take place in September.
The British super-middleweight title scene also faced disruption recently when Mark Heffron was ruled out of his first defense against Zak Chelli. Their highly anticipated showdown was scheduled for July 1 in Manchester, but Shalom received news that the champion, who won his belt 11 months ago, is unable to compete.
“He’s had an issue with his foot, and something’s gone wrong with his hamstring, making it impossible,” Shalom disclosed.
“We take that at face value. We have a good working relationship with Team Heffron, and the fight will be rescheduled for a later date. Zak Chelli will still fight on the Manchester card. We believe we have a very decent alternative for Zak Chelli since it was a fight that everyone was looking forward to.
“So, once again, you have to adapt to unexpected circumstances. The past six months have been really tough for us, to be honest. So many pull-outs, so many injuries. It’s not the fighters’ fault, but I’m proud of the team because they’re the ones putting in the effort. I hope we won’t have as many injuries in the next six months,” he concluded.