http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=13302&more=1 I am shocked and appalled at the decision by the New Jersey States Attorney General Anne Milgram and her office to dismiss Larry Hazzard from his services as longstanding head of the New Jersey State Athletic Commission. I am standing up to renounce this decision and I encourage all members of the boxing community—fighters, trainers, judges, promoters, commissioners, television networks, and the media—to join me in protesting this decision.. What's most disturbing is that they not only did they do this the same day he buried his 41-year old nephew, but they also admitted that "Commissioner Hazzard did nothing wrong. It was just time for a change." (Atlantic City Press, Nov. 16.) This might be a change that they needed but it is certainly not a change that boxing needs. We were just fine with Larry Hazzard as a leader in our sport. Larry Hazzard for the past 22 years has run one of, if not the most, efficient and ethical Commissions in boxing. From a fighter's viewpoint, he championed safety and welfare for all of us, whether we were champions or just four-round fighter. He was always looking to improve the sport and never feared speaking his mind for the greater good of boxing. The bigger question here, and as far as I know, Ms. Milgram did not consult anyone within the boxing community to get opinions to base her decision on. Boxing is a difficult sport anyway and how are they going to be able to replace Larry Hazzard with someone who is as competent as he is? I have to use the old saying here, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" Please join me in expressing your outrage by contacting the State's Attorney General's office. You can write to 25 Market Street, Trenton, NJ, 08625-0080 or call 609-292-4925 or send an email to http://www.nj.gov/oag/offices.htm . Thank you, Bernard Hopkins Light Heavyweight Champion of the World
Seems that it has to do with his outspoken disdain for the mixed martial arts and possibly Tommy Morrison. Hopkins is mearly tyring to look like a hero but he is mearly defending the man who has always turned a blind eye to GBP corruption. MMA is also financial competition for GBP. Plus Larry Hazzard is a Muslim, as is his appointee, "Amen" Rashade. :bart http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/boxing/box5-97.htm Now we know why GBP surrounds itself with so many Muslims. This content is protected Larry Hazzard: I Was Fired for Opposing Unsafe Practices in Boxing, MMA. Posted Nov 16th 2007 5:36AM by Michael David Smith Filed under: Boxing, Fighting, MMA This week New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram fired the state's top official overseeing boxing and mixed martial arts, Larry Hazzard. Now Hazzard says that he was fired because he wrote a letter to the governor expressing concerns about whether fighters in New Jersey were being imperiled. The Newark Star-Ledger reports that the letter documented Hazzard's belief that an employee of the State Athletic Control Board had sanctioned mixed martial arts mismatches, allowed a fighter to fight even though that fighter had not provided proof of a negative HIV test, and allowed promoters to shop around for doctors who would clear their fighters to fight. For Milgram's part, her spokesman just said she fired Hazzard because, "It was time for a change." She's going to need to do better than that. Hazzard had been on the job for 22 years and was one of the most important figures behind the scenes of both boxing and mixed martial arts. Milgram needs to explain why it was time for a change, and whether she's bowing down to the state's powerful casino lobby, which wants fights to draw fans into casinos and doesn't always have time for little things like making sure the fighters aren't risking their lives in the ring.
Thanks Hopkins for informing us I will make a call today. Your a true Champion in more ways than one.
