When it comes to honesty it seems we can rely on Anthony Joshua outside as well as inside the ring.
Even though he was co-promoter of his man Lawrence Okolie v Isaac Chamberlain on Saturday night, Britain’s world heavyweight champion was first to admit that the fight was a rhubarb.
AJ, sitting at ringside, was correct not only in calling Okolie the winner but also by decrying the lack of drama, entertainment and basic boxing skills in an absolute shambles of a one-sided miss-match.
Lawrence Okolie beat Isaac Chamberlain at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday evening
Anthony Joshua was ringside for the fight alongside Eddie Hearn and father Barry Hearn
There can be no denying that Eddie Hearn pulled off something of feat as lead promoter by drumming up some 8,000 spectators for an O2 Arena card without a genuine headline contest.
Hopefully he will never again put himself and the public through the misery of two novices topping the bill in a major venue with massive television exposure.
This travesty would have passed headline muster at York Hall. British Beef was the title of this non-event. British bull would have been more appropriate.
Okolie, a Rio Olympian, is still as raw as the steaks old-time boxers used to apply to their cut and swollen eyes.
But as a trimmed down virtual heavyweight he was much too big and strong for Chamberlain, who is small at cruiserweight.
Okolie used that advantage to swarm all over Chamberlain like an octopus, shoving him on to the ropes and then pushing him down to the canvas.
As a wrestling match, it would have been thrown out by the WWE. Referee Steve Gray should have done the same but this official was not having his best night.
Many spectators left early as Okolie v Chamberlain failed to live up to any expecations
He deducted an early point from Chamberlain when it was Okolie doing the holding and did not take action against the culprit until it was too late to prevent the fight descending into chaos.
Presumably he failed to call it off since Okolie usually threw a punch before lunging into the grapple. So this one was allowed to go the full 10 rounds.
Not that all the spectators lasted the distance. Many could be seen on our television screens leaving their seats before the end.
Both men came into this ludicrously over-hyped nonsense unbeaten in their short careers but with their skills undeveloped by weak opposition. Chamberlain, in particular, did not have the know-how to fend off Okolie’s basic charges.
Referee Steve Gray had a bad night and should have thrown the fight out before its end
The Sky commentary team were left with the excruciating embarrassment of flogging a dead horse. Their bosses should should ask serious questions before allowing any repetition.
Okolie won this so-called battle of London by a street but he, like the loser, will have to go back to the undercards.
Hearn acknowledged that there must be no rush to propel Okolie towards the elite. Not when one of two formidable Eastern Europeans will shortly become the first man to hold all four world cruiserweight titles.
Hearn (left) pulled off something of feat as lead promoter by drumming up 8,000 spectators
Also on Saturday night, Murat Gassiev added the WBA belt to his IBF title by stopping Yunier Dorticos with three knock-downs in the 12th round of a spectacularly brutal fight in Sochi.
That was in the semi-final of the cruiserweight section of the World Super Series.
Gassiev will meet WBC and IBF champion Oleksandr Usyk in the final in May. Okolie, who to his credit admitted that he still has much to learn, would do well to watch and study what promises to be a spring classic in Jeddah.
Into the void left by Prizefighter comes Ultimate Boxxer.
The latest version of eight fighters contesting quick-fire quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final in one pressure cooker night comes to Manchester on April 28.
The concept proved popular for Matchroom promotions in London’s sprawling Alexandra Palace, notably when Audley Harrison briefly resurrected his heavyweight career.
The new twist, in the more intimate setting of Manchester’s EventCity, is to target the urban youth audience newly attracted to the sport by the soaring popularity of Anthony Joshua.
Audley Harrison notably resurrected his heavyweight career at Prizefighter in London
So in addition to eight unbeaten British welterweights fighting to make names for themselves, there will be hot DJs spinning the music.
Former world champions Ricky Hatton and Paulie Malignaggi are ambassadors for Ultimate Boxxer, with Hitman Hatton saying: ‘This is a big opportunity for many talented boxers who are cut off from the mainstream of the game.’
Each fight will be scheduled for three three-minute rounds.
Ticket information at www.ultimateboxxer.com