Some shenanigans went down today in Belfast, as Martin Rogan stormed out of the weigh-in event for tomorrow's fight with Tyson Fury, claiming he'd been set up and offered a new contract for a 12-round fight, when the fight was originally set for 10 rounds. Here's the video of what went down:
Let me say a few things and then move on from this, because I have to admit I don't really care one way or another how many rounds this crummy fight is scheduled to be.
- It's bunk to blindside someone with a 12-round fight when they were prepared to go 10, particularly when it's a semi-retired, 40-year-old novice you've brought in to lose because he carries mild name value. At face value here (more in a moment), Rogan is right: The Irish title is contested over 10 rounds for the last 20 years or so. That's a fact.
- Mick Hennessy calling this "a big international fight" is nonsense. It's as regional as a regional fight gets. It's between two regional fighters for a regional title.
- On another note, Tyson Fury claiming that a win over Rogan will prepare him for the Klitschkos is even greater nonsense. Sometimes you have to wonder if he truly believes the insanity that comes out of his mouth.
The fight will go on, which makes all of this seem a bit stupid. Rogan is apparently just claiming he won't fight for the Irish title if it's 12 rounds. Well, why not? So my gut feeling is there's at least a bit of a desperate push for attention here.
In other words, whatever. Bad Left Hook will have live coverage of Fury vs Rogan tomorrow at 5 p.m. EDT, via Channel 5 in the UK.