BOXING coach Orlando `Pocket Rocket’ Rogers licence as a professional boxing coach has been suspended by the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC) for a period of three months after Derick Richmond was made to use a defective scale  prior to his contest against Barbados’ Keithland King for their September 24 engagement at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH).

According to a GBBC release, Rogers has been suspended for 90 days from performing the duties of a professional coach. The release stated that Rogers’ suspension is due to the fact that he (Rogers) used a defective scale that produced an erroneous weight and was publicly confirmed at the weigh-in and secondly, his negligent approach as a coach and failure to properly acquit his responsibilities as a professional boxing coach.

Boxer Derick Richmond was fined $30,000 for breaching the agreement to deliver the contracted services at the specified weight and his actions which culminated in his inability to compete beyond the second round.

On the day of the weigh-in, Richmond tipped the scale at 174 pounds, some 15 pounds over the weight limit, while King weighed in at 159; thus the fight became a catch-weight affair.

King disposed of Richmond after just six minutes of action in the GBBC’s Young Guns `The Proving Ground’ five-fight boxing card which was promoted by professional boxer, Dexter Marques and former world-rater, Clive Atwell.

The Barbadian improved his professional record to three wins in as many fights after forcing Richmond to call it a `day’ at the conclusion of the second round of their six-round middleweight contest, which was the feature bout on the GBBC’s fight card.

The much-anticipated bout started off very casually, with both boxers feeling out each other during the first round, but after getting a feel of each other’s arsenal, King and Richmond went after each other during the second round, with Richmond connecting with some telling combinations and King responding in like manner.

The fight seemed even going into the final minute, but King unleashed a barrage of one-two combinations that apparently hurt the Guyanese (Richmond) as he went back to his corner looking fit and well, but surprisingly, when the bell sounded for the start of the third round, he refused to come out of his corner, giving King a technical knock- out victory, which is his third win within the distance in his three professional fight-career and Richmond’s fifth loss after 11 fights.