Ariel Helwani says Mike Coppinger has become 'a lackey for Turki Alalshikh'

Helwani turned on The Ring's boxing insider over his report that Fury vs Joshua could be off, and said Turki Alalshikh is enjoying being at the centre of the row.

By Combat Sports UK Staff · Published Mon 28 Sept, 19:09 UK · AI-assisted reporting

Graphic: Ariel Helwani on Mike Coppinger — Original graphic: Combat Sports UK

Ariel Helwani has hit out at Mike Coppinger, The Ring's boxing insider, over his reporting on Tyson Fury against Anthony Joshua.

Coppinger reported on Friday that the Cardiff fight could be called off, amid a dispute over Dana White's role in the promotion: Fury vs Joshua in doubt. Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show on Monday, Helwani said Coppinger had once been seen as one of boxing's leading news-breakers.

"There was once a time where Mike Coppinger was a really respected member of the media," Helwani said. "But ever since he left ESPN and signed with The Ring and really just became a lackey for Turki Alalshikh and everyone involved at TKO, his credibility has gone to sh*ts. No one believes him when he tweets anything... I feel bad for him because he has to know deep down inside that no one respects him."

He went on: "He took the money. He ran with it. He's hardly used on the broadcast... what he does is show up for some photo ops and tweet stuff like this when it's needed to put some kind of public pressure or to publicly kiss someone's behind involved in all of these Zuffa Boxing, TKO, Sela dealings. It's a sad existence. It's not going to end well."

Helwani also said Alalshikh, who is funding the fight, was enjoying the row. Of Alalshikh posting with TKO's Nick Khan and White, he said the message to Eddie Hearn was "basically saying, you're trying to screw this up, Eddie Hearn. These are my guys... I think he likes all of this... He's at the center of it all."

Every turn in the Fury vs Joshua row is in our Dana White and Eddie Hearn timeline.