Earlier this year boxer and MMA fighter Tim Hague died following a bout with Adam Braidwood. The bout was a one sided affair with Hague being knocked down 3 times in the first round with an arguable 4th knockdown that the referee deemed a slip.
In the second round Hague was dropped for a fourth time and allowed to continue. Shortly thereafter the final knockout blow landed.
Footage of the bout is available on YouTube. Viewer discretion is advised.
In the midst of public pressure the City of Edmonton and the Edmonton Combative Sports Commission, the regulatory body that approved the bout, announced a third party ‘review’ of the circumstances surrounding the fight.
Months have passed and the conclusion of the third party review continues to be delayed.
This week CTV News is airing a three part series scrutinizing the circumstances surrounding the fatal bout.
The first part of this investigation aired today and focused on perhaps the most troubling aspect surrounding the bout, the fact that the ECSC did not apply their post bout medical suspension standards when licencing Hague.
Hague suffered three KO/TKO losses in boxing, ‘super boxing’ (basically stand up MMA), and MMA in the 9 months prior to the Braidwood bout.
Edmonton’s Safety Policy #9(f) notes that a boxer with three KO/TKO losses in one year must be suspended for “A period of not less than one year” before competing again. Edmonton either ignored this standard, persuaded themselves that a different standard should be in force when making a licensing decision for a boxer with a string of recent head trauma, or failed to learn of Hague’s recent fight record.
The investigative report highlights the recent TKO/KO losses Hague suffered. They are worth reviewing as all appear to involve significant strikes to the head.
If the above policy was applied to Hague as a licencing standard he was not fit to compete until at least April, 2018. He would not have been in that ring.
According to the ECSC’s own words this policy exists “…to ensure the contestant has time to heal before participating in training and before competing in subsequent match”.
Part 1 is available here. Part 2 and 3 will air later this week.
Combat Sports Law 