Boxing promotor Loew distraught after deadly fight; victor speaks to opponent's dad

YOUNGSTOWN

Jack Loew doesn’t hold anyone responsible for the death of 19-year-old boxer Hamzah Ajahmi.

Still, the longtime boxing promoter was both distraught and at times at a loss for words Wednesday as he answered questions during a news conference and tried to describe what’s next for him and his sport in the Mahoning Valley.

“[Expletive] everybody that wants to blame things on people,” Loew said. “This is a young man [who] died.”

Ajahmi, of Dearborn, Mich., made his professional boxing debut Saturday at Loew’s “Season’s Beatings” pro-am against Warren’s Anthony Taylor. After going three rounds, he went to his knee after the fourth round without being hit and then collapsed. He died Tuesday at St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital.

Paramedics carried Ajahmi out of the ring. He underwent brain surgery during the weekend before he died.

Speaking at his Southside Boxing Club on Market Street, the normally loquacious Loew kept things brief. He said he believed the proper safety precautions were followed and the necessary medical and training staff was in place.

“It could have been my fighter,” Loew said. “It could have been my son – he’s boxed. It could have been anybody.”

Loew also is concerned about Taylor’s well-being. He made his professional debut against Ajahmi.

Taylor visited Ajahmi in the St. Elizabeth intensive-care unit and spoke with his father.

Read what he said and more about the prospects for the sport here in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.