Sergei Gorokhov is assaulted after upset victory in Turkey.
Boxing has always been a bizarre, unusual sport. More than any other sport in the world, it produces strange scenes, interesting characters, and general day-to-day madness.
Yet every now and then, something happens that is particularly odd. Something that really pushes the boundaries of even this unusual world we inhabit.
You know those certain occasions. Everyone does. For example, James Miller flying down on a giant fan during Evander Holyfield vs. Riddick Bowe 2 or Mike Tyson biting Holyfield’s ear in his rematch with “The Real Deal”.
Those are the stories even those outside of the immediate boxing circle have heard.
Here’s another peculiar one.
On Saturday, Russian light-heavyweight Sergei Gorokhov travelled to Turkey to face unbeaten hometown fighter Emirhan Kalkan.
You may not recognise Gorokhov’s name, but it’s likely you’ll recognise those of who he’s faced: Avni Yildirim, Evgeny Shvedenko, Padraig McCrory, and Valery Brudov.
Anyway, Gorokhov is a road warrior and wasn’t expected to win, but he would end up wrecking Kalkan, rolling over “The Turkish Tank” and winning the Universal Boxing Organisation title.
Following his second-round knockout victory, Gorokhov made his way over to Kalkan’s corner in an attempted display of sportsmanship.
In response, one of Kalkan’s team members pushed Gorokhov, which eventually escalated into an in-ring brawl between the two corners.
As the action intensified, a number of fans rose from their seats and stormed the ring, letting fly with fists and feet as plastic chairs were sent soaring through the air.
In the melee, Gorokhov and his trainer were attacked, leaving the Russian and his team to seek medical attention afterwards.
Gorokhov revealed in a statement that his trainer had an MRI scan as a result of a head injury and that he believed there had been up to 80 people involved in the attack.
He also revealed that he now has a police escort and stated that he didn’t think he’d be staying in Turkey overnight.
It also appears that everyone involved managed to come out with minor injuries, though incidents such as these will never be acceptable regardless of the outcome.
Just the latest tale in this weird and wacky sport of ours.
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