He poured cold water on the rumours earlier in the year but Wladimir Klitschko is once again being linked to a lucrative offer to return to the boxing ring, two years after his last fight.
According to reports in Germany, streaming giant DAZN have made a renewed offer to tempt him back. The offer would see him pocket £60 million for three fights and could lead to a rematch with WBA, IBF and WBO world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, the last man to beat him.
The first offer for Klitschko to return was apparently in the region of £30 million and coincided with talk of the great Ukrainian fighting another Brit, Dillian Whyte. This rumour, however, was shot own almost immediately by the 42-year-old.
“If my status changes as a box-retiree, then I’ll talk about it,” Klitschko said. “But, so far, everything remains the same.”
Back in May, Texan Jermell Charlo was arrested for allegedly choking his former girlfriend. He has, however, now been acquitted on two charges of domestic violence, according to ESPN.
Following a testimony from the woman during his trial, 12 jurors deliberated for three hours to find Charlo not guilty of the crimes. If convicted, the former WBC super-welterweight champion could have faced up to ten years in prison.
“I can’t express how happy and relieved I am to be acquitted of these very serious charges,” Charlo said in a statement. “I was accused of choking and striking a woman, which is a horrible crime that I didn’t commit. I am grateful to my legal defense team, especially my lawyer Mike Howard, for the wonderful job they did for me.”
The talented 28-year-old lost his world championship in a shock upset against Tony Harrison in December and admits the allegations and trial have been detrimental to his recent fight preparations and form. One hopes he can now put the incident behind him and get back to doing what he does best.
Former world super-middleweight champion Lucian Bute has announced his retirement, ending a professional career that saw amass 30 consecutive victories and defend the IBF’s 12-stone title nine times.
The Romanian-born, Canada-based fighter hasn’t fought since February 2017, when stopped by Colombian Eleider Alvarez in Quebec City, and his retirement, at 39 years of age, seemed more a case of when not if.
A star in his adopted hometown of Montreal, Bute became world champion in 2007 and defeated the likes of Librado Andrade, Glen Johnson, Edison Miranda and Sakio Bika in a 15-year professional career. He bows out with a 35-5 record, which includes 27 knockouts.
