BROWN envelopes? Don’t make me laugh!” exclaims Ian John-Lewis, and then he does laugh at what he sees as an absurdity.
Rightly or wrongly, boxing is seen as a corrupt sport, with a business end staffed by gangsters, frauds, dastardly promoters and officials on the take. And one official who’s had to face such allegations more than once is John-Lewis, a vastly experienced referee and judge who’s made a number of high-profile controversial calls on both sides of the ropes.
Most recent, and most controversial of all, was his scorecard in last February’s world super-welterweight title fight between Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall. Taylor’s arm was raised after a bout in which seemingly the only people who thought he’d won were two of the judges – one of which was John-Lewis.
Such was the stink kicked up by this result that he never again worked for the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC). First, he was demoted from Star Class to A-Class, meaning he would no longer be allowed to officiate major title fights. Then, having been offered no further work since Taylor-Catterall, John-Lewis handed in his licence in September.
Some fans might say this was overdue. The 60-year-old from Strood in Kent had made a reputation
