The responsibility for the confusion over Sonny Bill Williams' boxing victory over Francois Botha has been laid at the feet of his manager and fight promoter Khoder Nasser.
Former All Black Williams won the WBA heavyweight fight in Brisbane last month on a points decision after 10 rounds, despite it being advertised as a 12-rounder.
An investigation by New Zealand's TAB, which refunded bets on the pick-the-round-of-victory element of the fight, has found that it was sanctioned by the WBA, but that the Australian National Boxing Federation has concerns over Nasser's failure to alert media outlets of the length of the fight.
A letter from Jim Young, the secretary of the Queensland branch of the Australian National Boxing Federation, to the TAB, which has been seen by APNZ, confirmed the fight was sanctioned by the WBA and that Williams is the WBA International heavyweight champion.
But the letter continues: "The WBA confirms that the promoter Mr Khoder Nasser has done nothing wrong regarding WBA regulations, however, he has let himself down by not advising media outlets, particularly the betting agencies, that it was a 10-round contest as the promoter handles all publicity for this promotion."
