Russian boxer Artur Petterbiev explained the circumstances that forced him to fight last week under the Canadian flag with American Joe Smith Jr.
“It was forced, once in my entire career I fought under the Canadian flag,” Petrbiev told RIA Novosti.
The Russian boxer expressed the hope that he would not be judged harshly, and stressed that he had always fought under the Russian flag before.
Petterbiev defeated his American counterpart by TKO in the second round on the night of June 19th.
Peterbiev, 37, maintained his unbeaten record with his 18th win.
The Russian defended the titles of the world champion according to the International Boxing Federation (IBF), the World Boxing Council (WBC) and won the belt of the World Boxing Organization (WBO).
He confirmed that he had lived in Canada for 15 years and had a Canadian passport in addition to a Canadian boxing license.
Earlier, the President of the World Boxing Council (WBC), Mauricio Suleiman, said that Petrbiev intends to fight under the Canadian flag because of the refusal of organizations to recognize fights involving Russian boxers.
Source: Novosti agency