Promoter Accuses Turki Alalshikh of Jared Anderson’s Defeat

The founder and head of Top Rank, Bob Arum, commented on the defeat of American prospect Jared Anderson (17-1, 15 KOs) in his bout against Congolese boxer Martin Bakole (21-1, 16 KOs). The promoter stated that he did not want this fight, but his client was lured by an offer from Turki Alalshikh, head of the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia.

“I want everyone to know that this was not our initiative. Turki Alalshikh directly approached the boxer with an offer of money he had never seen before and proposed that he become Bakole’s opponent — an incredible puncher. Jared was preparing to fight a fighter who moves little but has a powerful punch, and he had never faced an opponent like that before. So it’s no surprise that he was taken down and knocked out.

Don’t blame our matchmakers. We were against this fight. But when these guys are shown such money, it’s hard to convince them otherwise. We could have gone to court to prevent this, but we don’t do things like that.

We allowed the fight to take place. We made our money from this bout, but allowing it to happen was the worst choice Jared could have made,” said Arum.

In August, Martin Bakole scored a fifth-round knockout, handing Jared Anderson the first defeat of his career.