Former world featherweight champion Barry McGuigan said that boxing authorities "should fund a new foundation to help fighters with mental health issues," according to the BBC. McGuigan wants the new body to "pay for treatment where needed." He said, "It should happen sooner rather than later because we don't want a fatality on our hands." World heavyweight champion Tyson Fury has "revealed he is suffering from depression and has taken cocaine to help him deal with the issue." McGuigan said that the sport has "been blind" to elite athletes suffering mental illness, adding that he is "genuinely concerned" about Fury. Boxing promoter Frank Warren agreed with the Northern Irishman that there should be "some sort of programme." Warren: "It's the guys at the lower echelons of the sport who don't earn the big money who need the help." Middleweight Billy Joe Saunders, a close friend of Fury's, said that the heavyweight boxer is in "a bad place," while WBC cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew said that Fury "is not well" and "needs help" (BBC, 10/6).
