THE SIDELINES : London Bans Barkley-Benn Bout

British boxing officials today banned the World Boxing Organization’s middleweight title fight between challenger Iran Barkley and Britain’s Nigel Benn scheduled for August in London because Barkley has had retina surgery.

The British Boxing Board of Control ruled that the fight could not be staged in Britain. Promoter Bob Arum told the Times of London that the bout would be moved to the United States.

The British board has a history of denying fight licenses for medical reasons and has banned proposed London fights for Sugar Ray Leonard, who also has had retina surgery.