Aziz Abdul, the grandson of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin, was disqualified from his Commonwealth Games boxing match after appearing to repeatedly headbutt English boxer Damar Thomas.
Fight details
The 25-year-old, who had vowed to be the “baddest man in the Commonwealth,” was penalized by the referee after lifting his head twice into Thomas's chin during grappling in the third round. He had received warnings in the previous two rounds.
Thomas is now guaranteed at least a bronze medal. He said it was “not the way” he wanted to win.
Abdul's response
After the disqualification, Abdul claimed the judges were against him because he is a “black African.” He stated: “When you watch the previous fights of England their boxers create a lot of fouls. I land a heavy punch on him, they never count. Instead of counting they deduct me. I am black African. He is in homeland.”
He added: “All I can say about this is the decision is not right, I am not happy. He elbowed me. He caught me with the elbow. It [the head movement] was not intentional. I was trying to come back. How can I headbutt someone? I would not. He was the person they wanted to win. He was the winner before. I knew if I did not get knockout I could not win the fight.”
Background
Abdul had arrived in Glasgow saying he wanted to become the “new King of Scotland” by winning boxing gold, a reference to the name Amin gave himself in 1976. Amin ruled Uganda for eight years after a 1971 coup, with an estimated half a million people killed during his brutal regime, earning him the nickname “The Butcher.” He married six times, fathered up to 60 children, and had a fixation with Scotland, often wearing kilts and playing bagpipes, declaring himself “The Last King of Scotland” in 1976.
Abdul, who never met his grandfather, was chasing Uganda’s first Commonwealth boxing medal since 1990. In a previous interview, he said he was “inspired” by Amin, though it was unclear whether he referred to boxing feats—Amin also boxed. When interviewed by the BBC, he refused to answer whether he was proud to be the dictator’s grandson.
