FRANK WARREN has confirmed his intention to sue the British Boxing Board of Control over their threat to revoke the licence of anyone involved in the controversial fight between David Haye and Dereck Chisora.
The board had announced that anyone involved in the July 14 fight would be deemed to have terminated their membership with the BBBC. They have since backtracked slightly and said people involved in the fight at Upton Park will instead be called before the board but Warren insists their actions are "unlawful".
“The British Boxing Board of Control had an embarrassing climb down today [Friday, June 1] – withdrawing its threat to automatically terminate all of its members’ licences if they participate in the Haye v Chisora fight,” said Warren.
“I still take the Board’s threat to call me to account for my role in the fight as Dereck Chisora’s manager as unlawful. The Board seems to have pre-judged the issue without hearing the point of view of any of its members and this is just wrong. I intend to issue proceedings next week and will support all other licence holders who feel intimidated into not participating in the Haye v Chisora promotion.”
The bout will mark the first time a foreign organisation has supervised a fight on British soil after it was sanctioned by the Fédération Luxembourgeoise de Boxe. The BBBC's objections centre around both Haye and Chisora not holding a license to fight in Britain following their brawl after Chisora’s defeat by Vitali Klitschko in February.
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Warren says the BBBC could also face legal action from lightweight contender Kevin Mitchell after he was prevented from a world title challenge against Ricky Burns on the undercard.
“I may not be the only one suing the Board,” added Warren. “The Board has also stopped fighters such as Kevin Mitchell, who I also manage, from fighting on the undercard. This is such a shame as Kevin was looking forward to fighting in front of the crowd at West Ham and it would have been great for the fans to see him again. He is asking the Board to re-consider and it may be forced to do so rather than face proceedings from Kevin for the purse he would have earned together with the lost opportunity to fight in front of 40,000 people.”