Boxing

A EX-WORLD champion boxer has sparked a huge backlash after he posted a beaming selfie with his girlfriend while visiting Auschwitz.Former British IBF champ Jamie McDonnell, 35, has been slammed for taking the pictures with his girlfriend on a “lovely trip” to the concentration camp.
Jamie McDonnell posted the controversial pictures onlineCredit: Twitter / Jamie Mcdonnell
He has been hit by a huge backlash after taking the smiling imagesCredit: Twitter / Jamie Mcdonnell
The now deleted pictures show him grinning at the camera while visiting the death camp which saw thousands of people killed.
His “tone deaf” post sparked a huge outcry from members of the public, with one asking him if he knew it was a “concentration camp and not Disneyland.”
The two-time World Champion posted the series of selfies, which have now been deleted, with the comment “lovely day trip today round Auschwitz, opens your eyes a lot”.
One of the pictures showed him standing with his girlfriend at the entrance to Auschwitz, and has defended himself and the photos – branding his critics as “keyboard warriors.”
One Twitter user replied: “I don’t think the term lovely is quite appropriate for a description of Auschwitz.
“Also probs best not to pose like that in a place people experienced hell, suffering, torture, and death. But hey at least it opened your eyes.”
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Another said: “I do think it is good that they took the time to visit Auschwitz and I’m sure they learned a lot but the optics here are not great.
“You really don’t need to take photos at an extermination camp – you certainly shouldn’t be taking selfies. The site is a mass grave.”
A third added: “Whoever it is I hope he gets sparked clean out, there obviously isn’t much of a brain there to damage in fairness anyway.
“You would assume that after seeing the backlash to his grossly insensitive tweet he might acknowledge his mistake, instead he makes fun of it. D***head.”
But McDonnell deided to fight back, sparring with anyone who had disagreed with his now deleted post.
He said: “Obviously meaning a nice day out with the misses her in Poland, and the place opens your eyes, chill your bean.”
“Ok mate it’s a tourist place is it not so if we visit we can’t smile, come on pal.
“That’s why I am there obviously, I have a weekend away with my girlfriend, I’m not going to not smile am I, but I understand what’s happened chill out a bit.”
He also said that those criticising him needed to “get a life” and said that it was “getting boring.”
Auschwitz-Birkenau is the largest of the Nazi concentration camps and 1.1m prisoners, mostly Jews, died there.
It was first constructed to hold Polish political prisoners, who began to arrive in May 1940.But Adolf Hitler then presided over the extermination of those arriving, with the first inmates executed in September 1941.
From early 1942 until late 1944, transport trains delivered Jews to the camp’s gas chambers from all over German-occupied Europe, where they were killed en masse with the pesticide Zyklon B.
It was finally liberated in January 1945, with one in six of the Jews exterminated during the Holocaust dying there.
The two-time world champion has been defending himself onlineCredit: Reuters
Jamie and his girlfriend had been visiting the campCredit: Twitter / Jamie Mcdonnell More

CHRIS EUBANK JR wants to put Brighton’s Amex Stadium on the boxing map.The Hove-born middleweight beat Liam Williams in Cardiff and has lots of potential fights now.
Chris Eubank Jr recently beat Liam Williams in CardiffCredit: Reuters
A front-runner is old enemy Billy Joe Saunders, who proudly won his second world title at his local Stevenage FC ground in 2019.
Sheffield star Kell Brook, another possible opponent, realised a childhood dream when he boxed at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane in 2017.
World champion Gennady Golovkin is the ideal rival and Eubank Jr, 32, says his star appeal means headlining at the Seagulls — who punch above their weight in the Premier League — is a serious subject.
He told SunSport: “Bringing Golovkin or anyone else to the Amex is not a throwaway comment or fantasy.
“It’s a brilliant new stadium with a Premier League football club in a seaside town, and tourist attraction.
“Lots of other fighters have had homecoming fights and it is definitely something I want and have earned.
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“I’ve boxed around the world and never been afraid to go into an opponent’s backyard, so let’s see if anyone is brave enough for this challenge.
“To be the first boxer to take a show to the Amex would be historic.
“London gets to hold most of the major shows in the south of England so it would be something special.”
A SunSport source at Brighton said: “We’re always open-minded to staging major events at the Amex, but are constrained by the Premier League season and this coming summer by the women’s Euros.”
Eubank Jr’s British boxing legend dad Chris was ringside for the unanimous points win over Welshman Williams eight days ago.
And Eubank Jr said: “He was happy with it, we got the job done. I did what I had to win comfortably.
“I made a statement and proved I am what I’ve said I am, and that’s a far superior fighter to him.” More

SHREDDED Amir Khan showed off his chiselled abs after his final sparring session before fighting Kell Brook – and declared he is ‘ready for war’.The Bolton boxer, 35, takes on his nemesis in their long-awaited grudge match next weekend.
Amir Khan is looking is fine shape a week out from the fight with Kell BrookCredit: INSTAGRAM
Khan shared a training video on his Instagram story
And he took to Instagram to reveal his fine physique.
Khan posted a photo in his training shorts and shoes with his hands on his hips revealing the ripped six-pack.
He wrote: “Last hard spar done. Ready for war #Feb19.”
Khan also took to his story to share some videos of him in training at the Amir Khan Academy in his hometown.
He then shared his schedule for the next week with a public workout on Wednesday, a press conference on Thursday before the weigh-in Friday and fight night on Saturday.
The pair step into the ring in front of 20,000 fans at the Manchester Arena, with the ring walk expected at around 10.30pm.
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Khan – who is fighting for the 40th time in his pro career – is determined to end his rivalry with Special K, also 35, with a spectacular victory.
Speaking in their Sky Sports: The Gloves Are Off debate, Khan said: “I’ve got everything.
“Better looks, better speed, better power, the engine, the chin.
“Both of us might not be the best at taking the best shots which is the honest truth I’m speaking honestly.
“Those eye sockets are not going to help, are they?”
‘I WANT TO HURT HIM’
Khan previously said: “I think it comes down to how hard you’ve worked and how hard I’ve worked going into this fight.
“Obviously with the great sparring, great game plan we have for this fight, I’m just going to go in there and hurt Kell, that’s what I want to do.
“I don’t want to go in there and just box him, I want to go in there to hurt him and to put him away.
“He’s already got smashed up eye sockets, he’s already been beaten, knocked out, this is the time now where I finish his career off so he never needs to look at boxing again.
“This is going to be a nice payday for you, Kell Brook, so you get this payday and walk away, leave the sport happy.”
The two 35-year-olds are desperate to win their feud once and for allCredit: PA More

ANTHONY JOSHUA is set to rematch Oleksandr Usyk in May in the UK as Eddie Hearn confirmed US and Middle East deals were snubbed. AJ surrendered the unified WBA, IBF and WBO belts to Usyk in September but later exercised his right to an immediate rematch.
Anthony Joshua is set to rematch Oleksandr Usyk in May back in the UKCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
With Joshua’s career potentially on the line it has sparked mass intrigue in the must-win rerun, with a host of suitors looking to host.
But promoter Hearn revealed AJ is set to regain home advantage and will have the full backing of the British fans against Usyk.
He said on the 5 Live Boxing podcast: “It’s clear AJ will be fighting Usyk, which is his preferred choice. May is when you’ll see that fight.
“There’s the UK, America, the Middle East – we’ve had offers all around the world for that fight. I’d like to do it in the UK and we’ll see.”
Joshua, 32, made his US debut in June 2019 but was stunned by outsider Andy Ruiz Jr, 32, in New York, losing in seven rounds following four knockdowns.
In the rematch six months later, the pair went to Saudi Arabia, where AJ would regain the belts and exact revenge.
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Saudi money men were recently fronting talks for Usyk, 35, to fight Tyson Fury, 33, in a historic four-belt heavyweight unification.
But Joshua was unable to agree a step-aside deal, which would have seen him paid to forfeit his rematch.
Now Fury is set to fight WBC mandatory challenger Dillian Whyte, 33, with AJ rematching Usyk.

Tottenham’s 62,000-seater was the scene of Joshua’s loss last year and remains a contender again.
But Wembley Stadium – where 90,000 watched AJ beat Wladimir Klitschko in 2017 – is another option for Hearn.
Anthony Joshua was beaten by Oleksandr Usyk in SeptemberCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun More

TYSON FURY wants Dillian Whyte to speak-up, put-up or shut-up over their £30million potential Wembley showdown.The 33-year-old WBC heavyweight king will face his long-waiting mandatory challenger this spring, as long as the Brixton Body Snatcher returns the contract by February 19.
Tyson Fury didn’t pull his verbal punchesCredit: PA
Dillian Whyte has so far frustrated Team FuryCredit: Getty
English football’s home is the frontrunner to host an 80,000 barnbuner but Fury is getting impatient that Whyte, 33, is yet to sign the deal and is refusing to do interviews to help flog the pay-per-views and tickets.
Whyte will earn £6million just for showing up and a potential £9m for winning and Fury – who went to Germany to dethrone Wladimir Klitschko for three world titles in 2015 – says he should count himself lottery-winner lucky.
The giant roared: “I don’t hate Dillian Whyte and he doesn’t hate me, I am going to make him a lot of money, more than he could have made in a million lifetimes.
“He should admire me and I have respect for him as my WBC mandatory challenger.
“I think not talking is pathetic, we are here to talk-up and sell one of the biggest fights in British boxing history and he needs to play his part.
“They keep going about the money and percentages but this little s*** is getting eight times more than I got when I beat Wladimir – and I was 20 times more popular than him for that fight, undefeated, mandatory with both the WBO and the WBA, and had won three world title eliminators.
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“He would be very sensible to take his money before he loses it. It is like this idiot has won the Euro Lottery.
“And if it is Wembley Stadium, it would be a very special moment for me, very special.”
Fury visited London to meet with the British press to start flogging the mouthwatering bout and – if he’s frustrated with Whyte’s stoic silence – made up for it by taking aim at the rest of the division.
He blames AJ and Whyte for the convoluted stepaside deal to let Fury face WBA, IBF and WBO champ Oleksandr Usyk collapsing over money.
And he insists he will punish them physically for their fiscal fascinations and labels them serpents destined for the bottom of the sea.
Joshua is a coward tooTyson Fury
He growled: “These men are cowards. Dillian Whyte has been waiting 1200 days for his title shot but was then licking his lips for step-aside money.
“Joshua is a coward too because he wanted that £15m to step aside and then he came back and asked for another £5m. Whyte is a coward but Joshua is a greedy coward.
“I don’t care what they say because Joshua and Hearn are just vipers, snakes in the grass, reptilians.
“I have cost them all that money and I take pride in it as well, thank you very much.
“They know not to cross me anymore, because I am driving this ship and it’s full of sharks out there.”

Eddie Hearn and Anthony Joshua are ‘vipers’Credit: PA More