Keith Thurman injured, bout on CBS with Shawn Porter is postponed
The most hotly anticipated bout in the first quarter of the boxing calendar is now off the schedule.
Unbeaten WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman, who was in an auto accident last week in which the air bags deployed, had to pull out of his title bout planned for March 12 on CBS as a result of the injuries he suffered, promoter Lou DiBella said.
As a result, the CBS card is off. But DiBella is hopeful of making a tripleheader for Showtime at Mohegan Sun on that date that would feature Abner Mares against Fernando Montiel, Gary Russell Jr. against Patrick Hyland and Thomas Williams Jr. against Edwin Rodriguez.
DiBella told Yahoo Sports that Thurman suffered whiplash injuries when both air bags in his car deployed after the impact. He said Thurman attempted to spar on Saturday, but his neck and shoulder were bothering him. Doctors told him he needed four to six weeks of rest to heal.
"I saw pictures of the car, and he's a very lucky young man," DiBella said.
No decision has been made on whether the rest of the card will be put onto Showtime, though DiBella said he hoped to have an answer shortly.
There is no date set for Thurman's return.
