We probably should have seen it coming. Francois Botha took drugs ahead of his fight against Sonny Bill Williams. We should have taken some ourselves before watching it. It was derided by many before as a joke, a farce of a fight between a young man’s ego and an old man’s need to make money. And yet, we watched. There was something of the freak show about the event on Friday afternoon, like a car crash or a gluttony competition. You knew it was wrong, but, hell, you wanted to see it anyway. Many wanted to see if the fat man could smash the ripped youngster.
He could, but he took 10 rounds to start doing so. By then Botha’s punches to the back of the head, his sly hits on the break and after the bell, and standing on the feet of Williams had begun to pay off for the South African. Botha, the Sydney Morning Herald reported yesterday, had been done for Phentermine, a stimulant, and Benzodiazepine, “a valium-type product”, which had also been found in his system. The Phentermine helps elevate heart rate and alertness, helps improve reflexes, and has been approved an “appetite suppressant to help reduce weight in obese patients”. Benzodiazepine, according to Wikipedia, is used to treat “anxiety, insomnia, agitation, seizures, muscle spasms or alcohol withdrawal”.
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