D
DoggyStylz
Guest
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/spo...l-fight-rejected/story-e6frg7mf-1226576756312
SONNY Bill Williams' manager Khoder Nasser has accused Francois Botha of "sour grapes'' after the South African boxer claimed he was offered $150,000 to throw last Friday's fight.
Nasser strongly denied Botha's allegation that he offered him that sum seven days ago in a Brisbane park, ahead of the World Boxing Association title fight which Williams won on points.
Botha, 44, told New Zealand's Radio LiveSport from Durban that he received a phone call from Nasser asking him to be picked up but to be alone.
Botha said his mobile phone was confiscated when he was in the car with Nasser before the offer was made.
"I was being walked (by Nasser), and during this walk, I was offered $150,000 to throw the fight,'' Botha said.
"I just said 'no, I can't do it'.''
Botha said he confided in a close friend when he returned to his hotel and they decided then to take the matter no further.
Botha's allegation follows confusion over the length of the controversial fight and disputed reports of a failed drug test from Botha.
Nasser took a hefty swipe at Botha's credibility.
"I think he (Botha) is still in a daze,'' Nasser told Fairfax.
"This is the same bloke who said he didn't know about the fight being 10 rounds, and then his promoter and he himself came out later and said it was 10 rounds.
"Then he said he wasn't drugs tested and then he said he was tested. Then he said he was tested by my brother, and now he has come up with this one. What is next?
"The fact the media is loving this sore loser must be unprecedented, the media is siding with a guy who has got sour grapes.
"He has got to come to terms with the reality that he got his ass whipped by a guy who had had only five fights.
"It is all well and good to come out with all these allegations after, but where's his manhood? Why wasn't it brought out the day before? It's absolute madness.
"If it happened like he said, why didn't he come out and report it then - or does it suit him now?''
Both sides have disputed what they understood the length of the fight should be, with Botha still adamant he had prepared for a 12-round affair.
He finished strongly and says another two rounds would have been enough to secure victory over a tiring Williams.
The South African is also dismayed by reports he had failed a pre-fight drug test, which reportedly revealed the presence of a banned stimulant.
Nasser said the testing process was credible, which Botha disputes.
He said he had been drug tested upon return to South Africa and the results were "all clear''.
Doubts have also been raised about whether the WBA actually sanctioned the bout, and if Williams' claim on the title is legitimate.
There was no WBA official present in Brisbane for the fight.
Additional reporting: AAP
SONNY Bill Williams' manager Khoder Nasser has accused Francois Botha of "sour grapes'' after the South African boxer claimed he was offered $150,000 to throw last Friday's fight.
Nasser strongly denied Botha's allegation that he offered him that sum seven days ago in a Brisbane park, ahead of the World Boxing Association title fight which Williams won on points.
Botha, 44, told New Zealand's Radio LiveSport from Durban that he received a phone call from Nasser asking him to be picked up but to be alone.
Botha said his mobile phone was confiscated when he was in the car with Nasser before the offer was made.
"I was being walked (by Nasser), and during this walk, I was offered $150,000 to throw the fight,'' Botha said.
"I just said 'no, I can't do it'.''
Botha said he confided in a close friend when he returned to his hotel and they decided then to take the matter no further.
Botha's allegation follows confusion over the length of the controversial fight and disputed reports of a failed drug test from Botha.
Nasser took a hefty swipe at Botha's credibility.
"I think he (Botha) is still in a daze,'' Nasser told Fairfax.
"This is the same bloke who said he didn't know about the fight being 10 rounds, and then his promoter and he himself came out later and said it was 10 rounds.
"Then he said he wasn't drugs tested and then he said he was tested. Then he said he was tested by my brother, and now he has come up with this one. What is next?
"The fact the media is loving this sore loser must be unprecedented, the media is siding with a guy who has got sour grapes.
"He has got to come to terms with the reality that he got his ass whipped by a guy who had had only five fights.
"It is all well and good to come out with all these allegations after, but where's his manhood? Why wasn't it brought out the day before? It's absolute madness.
"If it happened like he said, why didn't he come out and report it then - or does it suit him now?''
Both sides have disputed what they understood the length of the fight should be, with Botha still adamant he had prepared for a 12-round affair.
He finished strongly and says another two rounds would have been enough to secure victory over a tiring Williams.
The South African is also dismayed by reports he had failed a pre-fight drug test, which reportedly revealed the presence of a banned stimulant.
Nasser said the testing process was credible, which Botha disputes.
He said he had been drug tested upon return to South Africa and the results were "all clear''.
Doubts have also been raised about whether the WBA actually sanctioned the bout, and if Williams' claim on the title is legitimate.
There was no WBA official present in Brisbane for the fight.
Additional reporting: AAP
