- The British Boxing Board of Control began to investigate Dr Usman Sajjad in 2022
- The controversial doctor has connections to boxers who have failed drugs tests
- Dr Sajjad previously explained a scenario for how a fighter could play the system
Fighters and officials have been informed by the British Boxing Board of Control that they will not accept any medical documentation from Dr Usman Sajjad amid renewed scrutiny of his connections to boxers who have failed drugs tests.
Having previously worked with Conor Benn, who was recently cleared on doping charges, Dr Sajjad’s links to European super-bantamweight champion Dennis McCann have come under the microscope following the latter’s suspension on December 16 for a positive test.
Mail Sport revealed in 2022 that Dr Sajjad was under investigation by the Board at the height of the Benn saga, owing to comments he previously made on a podcast in which he detailed how a fighter could dope and evade detection. Factoring in the McCann episode, the Board told the Sunday Times last week that the doctor’s ‘activities’ in the sport ‘are being carefully considered’.
The Board’s general secretary Robert Smith has now moved to remind licence holders that Dr Sajjad, who has also flagged up his work with Tyson Fury, is not registered with the governing body and cannot submit medical papers on a fighter’s behalf.
The notice, which was sent on Thursday and has been seen by Mail Sport, read: ‘Please note that Dr Sajjad is not a registered Medical Officer with the British Boxing Board of Control and therefore, no medical documentation will be accepted at the Board’s head office undertaken by Dr Sajjad.’
It is understood that Dr Sajjad voluntarily gave up his registration in 2022 around the time that his links to Benn were being monitored. That registration had enabled him to work as a doctor at tournaments.
Dr Usman Sajjad (pictured in 2024) has been blacklisted by the British Boxing Board of Control amid renewed scrutiny of his connections to boxers who have failed drugs tests
Mail Sport revealed in 2022 that Dr Sajjad was under investigation by the Board after Benn tested positive for a banned substance ahead of his fight against Chris Eubank Jr
Dr Sajjad, who has also flagged up his work with Tyson Fury, cannot submit medical papers
While there is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Dr Sajjad, he has maintained his connections to boxing and posted on social media that he was working with McCann ahead of his scheduled fight on the Fury-Oleksandr Usyk undercard last December, prior to his positive test. That post on Instagram has been deleted and McCann’s team have protested the fighter’s innocence.
In 2022, Dr Sajjad’s lawyer Scott Ewing told Mail Sport that his client has never had any involvement in the supply of performance-enhancing drugs in sport. Ewing and Dr Sajjad have been contacted again for comment.
During a podcast recorded before he began working with Benn, Dr Sajjad made the startling claim that ‘80 to 90 per cent’ of elite boxers are taking drugs, before describing hypothetically how a fighter could take fast-acting testosterone after the testing window closes at 11pm each day and be clear of their system before it re-opens in the morning.
Mail Sport contacted Dr Sajjad and his lawyer for comment.
