Billy Joe Saunders is considering retirement from boxing after advisor Daniel Kinahan walked away from the sport.
The Irish boxing broker has advised both the WBO super-middleweight world champion and world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in recent years.
But after the WBC heavyweight champion publicly thanked Kinahan for negotiating the financial agreement for a mega fight against Anthony Joshua, Kinahan's name was brought up by the Irish government, with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar telling the Dáil that he is a man with “a chequered history in this State and elsewhere”.
Fury’s promoter Bob Arum then confirmed Fury would be parting ways with Kinahan, which has angered Saunders and led to him considering his future in the sport.
“This is part of the reason why nothing has moved forward with me at the minute,” Saunders told IFL TV.
“There’s only one man I can trust and go away and work and tell him this is what I want to happen, and sometimes he’ll make it even better.
“Without a man you can trust in this game 100 per cent, it’s something I don’t want to be involved in any more.
“It’s about having somebody you can trust and go and get on with your business. Making fights is more stressful than getting ready to fight.
“I took a lot of advice from a very personal friend of mine in Daniel. He’s walking away from boxing, which is a big, big loss in my eyes.
“I don’t know if I want to be a part of it at this level anymore moving forward.”
Kinahan is regarded as boxing’s newest power broker. The son of convicted drug dealer Christie Kinahan, he founded the boxing management group MTK Global in 2012 and currently lives and works in Dubai.
He is also a person of significant interest to the Gardaí, the state police force of the Republic of Ireland. Only last month, Mr Justice Tony Hunt accepted evidence at Dublin’s Special Criminal Court that the Kinahan organised crime group was involved in organised drugs and firearms dealing on “an international scale” and that it has used “execution style” murders to protect its interest.
In 2018, a Spanish police officer told a court in Marbella that Kinahan ordered the murder of a gang rival on the Costa Del Sol in 2015. He is banned from entering the US and his name allegedly appears on target lists at the CAB, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the FBI.
Kinahan has no criminal convictions.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 30 Jun 2020, 08:19
by Flump
I'm warming to Kinahan, he can not only get Fury-Joshua made but can also retire Billy Joe Saunders.
Don't see what all the fuss about dead bodies, drug dealing and arms brokering is myself.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 30 Jun 2020, 08:28
by Wee Tommy
Flump wrote: ↑30 Jun 2020, 08:19
I'm warming to Kinahan, he can not only get Fury-Joshua made but can also retire Billy Joe Saunders.
Don't see what all the fuss about dead bodies, drug dealing and arms brokering is myself.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 30 Jun 2020, 08:54
by Black Sam Bellamy
Hasn't Saunders already retired ?
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 30 Jun 2020, 12:15
by jamesmcdonnell
If it means the end of Saunders, I'll personally kiss Kinahan's arse.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 30 Jun 2020, 12:21
by Counter-puncher
Flump wrote: ↑30 Jun 2020, 08:19
I'm warming to Kinahan, he can not only get Fury-Joshua made but can also retire Billy Joe Saunders.
Don't see what all the fuss about dead bodies, drug dealing and arms brokering is myself.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 30 Jun 2020, 13:14
by bigjack
jamesmcdonnell wrote: ↑30 Jun 2020, 12:15
If it means the end of Saunders, I'll personally kiss Kinahan's arse.
I'd take retirement but would have liked to see a devestating ko loss first
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 09:06
by PredatorHayds
He’s not fixing fights like Carbo and Palermo.
I don’t mind him involved in boxing. He’s putting money into the sport (granted we know where the money came from).
He’s not the first manager/advisor/promoter to come from a criminal background and I doubt he will be the last.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 10:52
by Flump
PredatorHayds wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 09:06
He’s not fixing fights like Carbo and Palermo.
I don’t mind him involved in boxing. He’s putting money into the sport (granted we know where the money came from).
He’s not the first manager/advisor/promoter to come from a criminal background and I doubt he will be the last.
Boxing is full of people with a past, that's accepted. The problem is that it seems Kinahan's reputation is one of being very much still involved, and media organisations within the woke new world will want nothing to do with him now that his involvement is in the open.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 11:09
by banjo
Hypocrites are all over the place, it's like Raheem Sterling wittering on about racism yet happily takes money from a club owned by Abu Dhabi or Lewis Hamilton who willingly drives for a company which used Jewish slave labour.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 11:20
by TheLeprechaun
PredatorHayds wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 09:06
He’s not fixing fights like Carbo and Palermo.
I don’t mind him involved in boxing. He’s putting money into the sport (granted we know where the money came from).
He’s not the first manager/advisor/promoter to come from a criminal background and I doubt he will be the last.
We've seen shockers on MTK shows. Ohara Davies vs Vasquez was one of the worst decisions ever seen in a British ring. Kash Farooq was robbed blind vs McGregor. The mother of all robberies was the Mimoune McKenna fight. All of these dodgy results were on MTK shows, just saying. They were all disgraceful. Mind you Katie Taylor vs Persoon was an absolutely sickening robbery as was Ryder vs Smith, and they were Matchroom.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 14:16
by Coco
If you say Kinahan is guilty of criminal activity you have to say AJ is guilty of taking PED's
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 14:39
by magnus
[/quote]
I agree with this. If he hasn't been nicked its just rumours and hearsay
[/quote]
He would be nicked if he stepped off a plane back into Ireland. He's their most wanted. He'd also be nicked if he entered any country with an extradition policy with Ireland (I think).
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 14:44
by magnus
I agree with the rumours and hearsay suggestion though.
There's nothing remotely suspicious about a promotional company with no fixed tv deal, who don't put on shows bigger than small hall stuff, who are offering a two year, five fight contract, with guaranteed six-figures purses, to the winner of Ryan Walsh vs Jazza Dickens.
Nope, nothing to see here.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 15:19
by Nightmare Roy
Flump wrote: ↑30 Jun 2020, 08:19
I'm warming to Kinahan, he can not only get Fury-Joshua made but can also retire Billy Joe Saunders.
Don't see what all the fuss about dead bodies, drug dealing and arms brokering is myself.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 15:23
by Counter-puncher
magnus wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 14:44
I agree with the rumours and hearsay suggestion though.
There's nothing remotely suspicious about a promotional company with no fixed tv deal, who don't put on shows bigger than small hall stuff, who are offering a two year, five fight contract, with guaranteed six-figures purses, to the winner of Ryan Walsh vs Jazza Dickens.
Nope, nothing to see here.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 15:45
by margaret thatcher
So what do you guys think Danny K does for a living then
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
PredatorHayds wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 09:06
He’s not fixing fights like Carbo and Palermo.
I don’t mind him involved in boxing. He’s putting money into the sport (granted we know where the money came from).
He’s not the first manager/advisor/promoter to come from a criminal background and I doubt he will be the last.
Boxing is full of people with a past, that's accepted. The problem is that it seems Kinahan's reputation is one of being very much still involved, and media organisations within the woke new world will want nothing to do with him now that his involvement is in the open.
I don't think it's being 'woke' to not want known gangland figures to be involved in the sport.
We all know the sport has a dodgy history, but surely some effort to weed out the bad apples might help matters?
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 15:46
by jamesmcdonnell
margaret thatcher wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 15:45
So what do you guys think Danny K does for a living then
Florist to the stars.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 15:55
by Cyclops
I pressed play on that video, saw it was over 39 minutes long, and stopped it immediately.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 02 Jul 2020, 16:00
by Ruthless-RKO
Cyclops wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 15:55
I pressed play on that video, saw it was over 39 minutes long, and stopped it immediately.
Some of these IFL videos can be quite long. The sit-downs he used to do once a week with Hearn and Frank. They just sit there for ages and talk shït.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
PredatorHayds wrote: ↑02 Jul 2020, 09:06
He’s not fixing fights like Carbo and Palermo.
I don’t mind him involved in boxing. He’s putting money into the sport (granted we know where the money came from).
He’s not the first manager/advisor/promoter to come from a criminal background and I doubt he will be the last.
We've seen shockers on MTK shows. Ohara Davies vs Vasquez was one of the worst decisions ever seen in a British ring. Kash Farooq was robbed blind vs McGregor. The mother of all robberies was the Mimoune McKenna fight. All of these dodgy results were on MTK shows, just saying. They were all disgraceful. Mind you Katie Taylor vs Persoon was an absolutely sickening robbery as was Ryder vs Smith, and they were Matchroom.
farooq v mcgregor wasn't a robbery. it was a nip and tuck fight and, in my opinion, the right man got it.
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport
Posted: 03 Jul 2020, 02:14
by margaret thatcher
Was close for sure, felt Kash did enough but McG came on well late
Re: Billy Joe Saunders threatens to quit boxing over Daniel Kinahan stepping away from sport