British boxing was shocked when news broke that Scott Westgarth had tragically passed after his fight last Saturday in Doncaster against Dec Spelman.
Spelman lost the fight via points and despite the support from the boxing community, it’s obviously hard for the boxer to get over the events that occurred after the bout.
“It brings it home but this is my trade. I have loved boxing all my life and this is all I know. As a boxer it is in you, it is in your life and you just can’t put that out.
“I am very low at the moment and I can’t get it out of my head. I have been put in this position and it will be a long few weeks. Scott was such a good guy who has lost his life doing a sport he loved.
“I am gutted, devastated and heartbroken because he is such a nice guy.
“I have the utmost respect for him but when he got taken to hospital I thought this is serious and it is just heartbreaking,” said Spelman in an interview with The Scunthorpe Telegraph.
At this point, Spelman is unsure of his future as a professional boxer.
“This really brings it home and I will have to spend a long couple of weeks thinking about what I want to do.
“You can see from the messages what a great guy he was and I couldn’t believe it when I heard the news.
“We are all fighters in there,” Spelman said. “It is a business and we know the massive risks. I have a little boy, am on the front line and have seen how serious it is,” he said.
My thoughts are also with my fighter @dec_spelman one of the nicest lads you will ever meet this won't be easy for him I will support him in whatever he decides to do.
— Carl Greaves (@CarlGreavesPro) February 26, 2018
“The fight doesn’t even come into it but you never think anything like this will happen in your fight. I am absolutely gutted.
“It brings it all home so I will see where I go from here,” added Spelman.
Spelman’s trainer Carl Greaves was also devastated by the news.
“You don’t expect things like these to happen, we all know the dangers of the sport. When it does happen, it shows how tough the sport is. It’s heartbreaking. The lad came to fight and fought the fight of his life.
“He was the underdog and boxed out of his skin. It’s just a travesty. He took heavy blows in the last round but no one expected this to happen.
“Thoughts are with all his family and everybody at his gym, manager and trainer,” said Greaves.
We at Boxing Social encourage everyone to support and donate to Westgarth’s Go Fund Me-page.
https://www.gofundme.com/scott-westgarth
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Boxing Social offers condolences to Scott Westgarth’s family and friends