The women’s unified featherweight world boxing champion Amanda Serrano was ruled unfit to fight with Nina Meinke due to damage done by a chemical used to do her hair. The match was about to take place in her homeland of Puerto Rico, but the chemical had caused an eye injury to Serrano, and her business partner Jake Paul announced she was unable to take part in the fight.
No Boxing Due to an Eye Injury
This happened right after Paul beat Ryan Bourland in their match. Paul stood inside the boxing ring near Serrano and announced she wouldn’t be able to fight. This effectively canceled the main event minutes before it was about to go down. The crowd of 18,000 was displeased by the news and booed as Serrano cried while wearing sunglasses.
Jake Paul, the co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions, an organization that represents Amanda Serrano and other athletes, said the $1.5 million that was generated at the gate would be fully refunded to any spectators asking for a refund for their ticket. Serrano also apologized through tears for the inconvenient situation. Still, not all fans were happy with that.
A Deal-Breaking Eye Problem
According to Paul and his business partner Nakisa Bidarian, co-founders of MVP, after Serrano had her hair done, a chemical went into her eye during a running session. That is also why she wore glasses at the weigh-in for the boxing match. Bidarian said Serrano went to the doctor later that day and tried to reduce the eye problem so she could fight. However, when the commission’s medical doctors did their examination, they pronounced that she was unfit to fight and didn’t allow her to enter the ring.
According to Paul, the chemical also visibly burned her hand. Bidarian asked the Puerto Rican crowds to support Serrano during this trying time and show how much they cared about her. According to him, she wanted nothing more than to fight and please the fans.
Bidarian said the match would be rescheduled in the future, and that opponent Nina Meinke will also pay her fight purse in full.