Boxing promoter Ben Shalom denies defending homophobic comments made by Liam Smith after reportedly saying the fighter had to ‘put up with a lot of rubbish’ ahead of his fight with Chris Eubank Jr
- Ben Shalom has denied defending homophobic comments made by Liam Smith
- He had said Smith had ‘put up with a lot of rubbish’ before Chris Eubank Jr fight
- Smith had apologised for homophobic comments he made before the fight
- Shalom’s company, Boxxer, have responded saying ‘it was not a defence of unsavoury remarks’
Ben Shalom has denied defending homophobic comments by Liam Smith after Sky Sports sought clarity around an interview given by the promoter following Smith’s win over Chris Eubank Jnr last month.
Sportsmail has been told that Shalom was asked to explain remarks made in the aftermath of Smith’s knockout victory, when he said the fighter had to ‘put up with a lot of rubbish’ ahead of the bout.
His comments were interpreted by perplexed Sky employees as a defence of Smith, who drew considerable criticism for saying to Eubank Jnr in a pre-fight press conference: ‘Chris, you go on about girls mate, has anybody in this room ever seen you with a girl? You’re 33. Do you want to tell us something?’
Boxing promoter Ben Shalom has said he denies defending homophobic claims made by Liam Smith
Shalom had reportedly said after Smith’s fight with Chris Eubank Jr that the Liverpool fighter had put up with a lot of rubbish’ ahead of the bout
Shalom, whose Boxxer company is responsible for the broadcaster’s UK-based output, claims he had been referring to ‘incendiary’ statements directed at his fighter in the week of the grudge match, with Eubank Jnr having responded to Smith’s taunts by saying: ‘I’ve been told by multiple sources that you cheat on your wife on occasion.’
A Boxxer spokesperson told Sportsmail: ‘We would like to ensure there isn’t any misunderstanding following post-fight comments made by our CEO and founder, Ben Shalom.
‘It was not a defence of any unsavoury remarks between the fighters that were made in the build-up to the fight.
Shalom’s company, Boxxer has since released a statement saying that the comment ‘was not a defence of any unsavoury remarks between the fighters’
Smith defeated Eubank Jr via a technical knock out in the fourth round of their fight
‘It was instead an acknowledgment of other incendiary comments levelled towards Liam that created some personal issues for him during fight week.
‘We absolutely do not condone or endorse any discriminatory attitudes, language or behaviour.’
A Sky Sports spokesperson said: ‘We do not tolerate homophobia or any form of discrimination at Sky Sports. We expect our partners to support our views on equality and inclusion for all.’
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