Naz Khanjani shared this photo from hospital after she was pulled out of tonight's boxing bout. Photo/Twitter
Naz Khanjani shared this photo from hospital after she was pulled out of tonight's boxing bout. Photo/Twitter
Naz Khanjani has returned to hospital after dramatically pulling out of her first competitive boxing bout scheduled for tonight.
A spokesperson for Duco Events confirmed Khanjani would not step into the ring against Mai FM host Lily Taurau after doctors said she had an infection and was not fit tofight.
She said she was "upset" at having to cancel but "it wasn't my call".
Khanjani later shared a photo showing her eating dinner in hospital recovering from the infection.
The decision to withdraw was not made by Khanjani, but by promoters Duco, who made the decision for her.
"It is a health and safety issue at the end of the day. It is our responsibility as a promoter to make sure that all our fighters are healthy when they go into the right. It is our decision, based on doctor's advice, that Naz is not healthy enough to step into the ring tomorrow night," said a spokesperson.
Taurau said she was "devastated" by Khanjani's last-minute exit, but she was still hoping to find someone to fight.
"I'm really upset about it. It's been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster. I want to fight anyway. It would be horrible to put in all the training and hard work for nothing to come of it," she said in a video posted to Mai FM's website.
Lily Taurau is hoping to find someone to fight tonight after Naz Khanjani's shock boxing exit.
She said promoters Duco were trying to find someone for her to fight.
Naz Khanjani has had to pull out of her first boxing match due to illness. Photo / Guy Coombes.
The decision came less than 24 hours after Naz stormed out of an interview with TV3 presenter Heather du Plessis-Allan, saying it was "too much for me".
Khanjani was showing off her boxing skills during the interview when she decided she'd had enough and walked away after being asked how many supporters she had on "Team Naz".
"I don't like how this interview went," Khanjani said, exiting into the gym's changing rooms.
She later returned to tell du Plessis-Allan: "When you were asking me the questions it was just like, woah, woah ... it's too much ... it's not your fault ... it's just too much for me."
She later admitted she hadn't been feeling well and had spent time in hospital leading up to the fight.
"I haven't been feeling the best for about a week and a half now. Yesterday it got to the point that I couldn't even walk, I was in that much pain," Khanjani explained.
Khanjani had been building up to her first boxing fight afor the Joseph Parker vs Solomon Haumono drawcard in Christchurch tonight.
She was the runner-up to Fleur Verhoeven in the second season of The Bachelor, even though many thought she should have won because of her chemistry with Jordan Mauger.
