Heavyweight boxer Adam Braidwood said he remembers wishing Tim Hague would stop the fight in the moments before he delivered the knockout punch that preceded Hague’s fatal brain injury.
Last Friday’s one-sided match at Edmonton’s Shaw Conference Centre continued for two rounds before a left hook from Braidwood sent Hague to the ground. Video of the fight shows a dazed Hague leaving the ring under his own power, but he was quickly rushed to hospital. Hague underwent brain surgery to relieve pressure from a brain bleed. His sister Jackie Neil announced his death on Sunday.
In his first interview since the fight, Braidwood told CTV News Channel that he knew his friend would die moments after he landed the technical knockout blow that sent him tumbling to the mat.
“I knew in the ring,” he said. “I just saw the way he fell.”
Braidwood called his celebration after the win “stupid,” and said he helped Hague’s team get him back to his corner immediately after he started moving. He said he will remember the 34-year-old fighter as a kind-hearted guy and a warrior to the end.
That warrior spirit was on full display during last Friday’s heavyweight bout. Hague stepped into the ring with Braidwood with only a few weeks’ notice, after another opponent dropped out. Braidwood is currently ranked first in heavyweight boxing in western Canada and ninth overall with KO boxing.
While some fans and boxing commentators have asked why the punishing match was not stopped by officials, others have said Hague’s death was a freak accident that could not have been predicted.
Braidwood, for his part, said he had to respect Hague’s decision to fight on, even though he personally felt the match should have been stopped.
“I’ll be honest with you. I was like, ‘It’s time to stop this fight. I was hoping Tim would stop it himself. If he doesn’t than we have to finish it until it is done.’ It is nobody’s fault,” he said.
“Tim was still there and he said he wanted to keep fighting and so that’s what happened,” Braidwood said. “He wanted to keep fighting so we kept fighting.”
Alberta Professional Boxing said that the three knockdown rule wasn’t enforced that night. The commission that oversees boxing in Alberta has declined to comment.
Braidwood said he has been in touch with the Hague family. He declined to elaborate on their communications, saying only, “They said it is not my fault.”
He said he is receiving support from his family and coaches while he copes with the loss.
Braidwood encouraged fans and well-wishers to do whatever they can to support the Hague family as they mourn the father and former elementary school teacher.
A GoFundMe crowdfunding page has been set up to raise money for Hague’s funeral and other expenses. The campaign has brought in more than $20,000 of its $30,000 goal, less than 24 hours after it was launched.
“I just want everybody to help Tim’s family. That is what this should be about. Instead of leaving a comment, contact his family,” he said in an emotional video posted to Twitter. “Help them any way you can. Let’s try to leave it at that. Nobody wanted this.”
