Ben Whittaker reacts after sustaining an injury during his fight against Liam Cameron on October 12, 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. – REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
A light-heavyweight fight between Britons Ben Whittaker and Liam Cameron ended in a draw after both crashed out of the ring in Riyadh on Saturday.
Whittaker left the arena in a wheelchair and was taken to hospital for scans to his injured leg after he and Cameron grappled onto the ropes and tumbled over the top.
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Cameron was sprawled on Whittaker as they fell on the outer canvas towards the end of the fifth round, with the latter unable to get up.
The bout was abandoned due to accidental injury and declared a technical split draw, with Whittaker 58-57 on one scorecard and Cameron ahead by the same score on another with the third tied 58-58.
The fight was on the undercard for the undisputed light-heavyweight world title bout between WBA champion Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev, the WBC, WBO, IBF champion.
Beterbiev was crowned boxing’s undisputed light-heavyweight world champion after beating Bivol on a majority points decision.
Two of the three ringside judges scored the fight 115-113 and 116-112 to Beterbiev while the other called it tied at 114-114.
By taking the bearded Beterbiev to a full 12 rounds at the Saudi capital’s Kingdom Arena, Bivol became the first man to go the distance against a champion with a previous 100% record of winning by knockout or stoppage.
“I wanted to box more, I don’t like this fight. I was a little bit uncomfortable,” said Beterbiev. “I felt uncomfortable, because usually I’m not waiting for the bell.”