Joshua speaks out on suffering concussion – TheNigerialawyer

Anthony Joshua has branded concussion a “weak term” after his
trainer Rob McCracken sparked controversy by admitting he knew his
fighter was concussed during his fight with Andy Ruiz Jr.
McCracken’s comments sparked a discussion about the safety of
fighters, but Joshua dismissed the idea he was finished the minute
he suffered the concussion.

Joshua, speaking to the Guardian before McCracken’s comments
were made, explained he was ready to fight through the concussion
to beat Ruiz Jr last June. “I knew where I was,” Joshua said about
the third round.

“But definitely they call it concussion…That’s what they call
it. But I think concussion is a weak term. ‘You’ve got to be
stronger than it. You’ve got to fight through the concussion if you
can. ‘That shot on my head (to the left temple in round three) made
it really difficult…If concussion is what they’re calling it, that
punch that gave me concussion, made it difficult.”

After causing a storm with his original comments, McCracken
moved to clarify his position on concussion. “I am not a doctor and
it may be that concussed is not the right term to have used,”

McCracken said. ‘The health of all the boxers I work with is of
paramount importance to me and I have always used my judgment and
experience to do what is right for them.

“There is no formal concussion protocol where the doctor steps
in to assess the boxer, so you have to use your experience as a
coach and your knowledge of the person to make a decision on
whether you think they can recover. ‘I have had this a number of
times in my career in professional boxing where boxers have
recovered from a difficult round to go on and win the fight.

‘I have also pulled boxers out of fights because I knew it was
not in their interests to continue.”