MARRIED At First Sight favourite Jordan Gayle has claimed rival Luke Worley was pulled out of the boxing match because he didn't take the training "seriously".
The 26-years-old Sheffield lad, who found love on the show with dance teacher Erica Roberts, said he'd been left bruised and battered after spending hours sparring.
But Jordan said his opponent Luke had not "stepped foot in a gym" and left the promoters with no choice but to pull him because they were worried for his safety.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, Jordan said: "Feb 9th was supposed to be me and Luke fighting each other, that was the big fight that everyone was interested in.
"We signed the contract and had a fight booked to settle it up, I was training twice a day in Sheffield, I was sparring...getting my head punched in, leaving the gym with a headache, bruising, feeling sore, I really put the effort and training in.
"It came to Christmas time and then I got a call on the 28th Dec from the promoters and told me they were pulling Luke out of the fight because apparently he's not stepped foot in a gym and we're not willing to pay him the money we were supposed to be paying.
"Luke hustled them for £12,000 guaranteed and then it was going to be 25 per cent of all pay-per-view sales, so they were paying him a lot of money.
"They said we can't justify spending this money on him when he's not had one boxing session
"While I was in Sheffield training before Christmas, he had gone to Turkey to get new teeth - he had not had any boxing sessions with a boxing coach, so they were able to cancel the contract on that clause."
The personal trainer continued: "Just the fact that he'd not been in the boxing gym, they were worried he was not taking it seriously.
"They were basically worried for his health, that if I fought him, I could do some serious damage because he was not taking it seriously.
"Obviously it's not a good look for him and they didn't want to pay him that money because he hadn't earned it."
Jordan claimed: "They've given him a £3,000 deposit and he's done absolutely no training, they've given that money for nothing - so I think they're ongoing issues there."
It's just embarrassing for him. Maybe he was just never brave enough to fight me.
Jordan Gayle
Jordan said DKM promoters ultimately called off the fight between him and Luke - but Jordan is still taking part in a charity match against another rival at the 02 Arena on Feb 9th.
He explained: "I had no indication that he was not training, until I had that phone call. Luke rang me later that day, I don't know if he wanted to save face saying 'look, it's not me who wants to pull the fight, I was going to train till now until fight night...I've not done any sparring but I've done runs',"
"It was bittersweet, I would have loved to have fight him because I know I would have won," Jordan said.
"But the fact he had not done any sparring up to that point, it would have been even easier for him.
"Maybe he would have trained like mad up until fight night but the boxing promotion said it was too little to late."
A rep for Luke said: "I got advice from a reputable white collar boxing company and was advised on how many boxing sessions would be required to take part in a white collar boxing event.
"All the requirements I was advised would have been met by the fight date.
"I feel there was a lot of miscommunication from both sides that ultimately caused the cancellation. I have no bad blood with the boxing company and wish them all the best.
"I went through several weeks of cardio and fitness training which resulted in me losing 22lbs to make weight for the fight.
"I have put everything with Jordan behind me and left it in 2023 so I’m not sure why he wants to carry it on. Ultimately we are both adults and he should start acting like one."
Jordan said he has not ruled out fighting Luke in the future.
He told us: "There is a small hope that he will if fight now that he's with Misfits Boxing.
"It's just embarrassing for him. Maybe he was just never brave enough to fight me.
"Who turns down that kind of money? Who turns down that kind of opportunity for what? I think if you've been given this contract to fight at the 02, you don't turn it down, unless you're scared, it's too big a stage for him."
Jordan said he and DKM promotions will donate £10,000 to charity from the revenue this event generates if the PPV sales reach 10,000 buys, which will go towards a men’s mental health charity and a cancer charity,
Jordan said: "I'm going to be headling at the 02, I love how it helps my mental health and gives me a purpose and a distraction from daily stresses.
"The person I want to fight the most is Luke but if Luke is not brave enough to fight me, then I will continue to see how far I can take it.
"It's going to be a massive event still. Hopefully I can look back and say I raised £10,000 for charity.
"I really want to spread the message, this is for charity, we have a big celeb guestlist and I want people to support us."
In December, Jordan broken his silence after his viscous bust-up with co-star Luke - which he claims left him with "blurred vision" and a bloodshot eye.
Jordan joined their co-stars at the PrettyLittleThing Christmas party.
But things quickly got out of hand between rivals Jordan and Luke - which resulted in the pair having to be separated by security.
Jordan told The Sun that Luke became aggressive and "physical" following some harmless banter - saying the sales executive then lashed out and "scratched him in the eye".
