CONTROVERSY: Clarke fends off Babanin
Photo: AIBA
FOUR British boxers won their quarter-finals at the Expo Arena in Ekaterinburg on Wednesday (September 18). But Frazer Clarke’s split decision victory over host nation super-heavyweight Maksim Babanin was contentiously reversed after the Russian federation lodged a protest that was successfully upheld.
Burton’s Clarke had boxed well from range, stepping backwards to land his jab and bringing his heavy cross through. But the portly Russian had bustled forward, cuffing Clarke with hooks on the inside and he raised his arms in celebration at the final bell. But it was Clarke who won an unexpected split decision from the ringside judges.