American bare-knuckle boxer Paulie Malignaggi has launched a scathing attack on NHS staff, describing them as 'inept animals' after his treatment at Leeds General Hospital following a fight last October. The 45-year-old former professional boxer, who faced the likes of Ricky Hatton and Amir Khan, was taken to hospital after beating Tyler Goodjohn in a five-round bout at BKB 47. He suffered severe cuts above both eyes and multiple fractured ribs.
Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, Malignaggi claimed he waited nearly nine hours for treatment and that his wounds were not properly cleaned, leading to ongoing complications. 'The cuts would have been just a regular stitch job in the United States,' he said. 'But they have people in the UK that work in the NHS that in America, probably wouldn’t even be allowed to work on farm animals.' He alleged that one cut became infected and was 'pussing out' until a few weeks ago.
Malignaggi also criticised the wait time, saying he arrived at 10pm but had not been stitched by 4:30am. In a video from the hospital after the fight, he said: 'I still have not been stitched up... They X-rayed me, didn’t give me the results on my hands. They gave me a CAT scan, I’ve got broken ribs.' He added that staff were 'gossiping' while he sat with blood dripping down his face.
A spokesperson for Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust responded: 'We’re sorry Mr Malignaggi had to wait in our Emergency Department to be treated following his bare-knuckle fight. We do prioritise patients based on clinical need, to ensure that the most critically ill patients are treated first. If Mr Malignaggi would like to contact us, we would be happy to discuss his complaint further.'
Malignaggi is set to return to the UK for another bare-knuckle fight in Manchester on May 16, promoted by BKB.
