Australian boxer Justis Huni’s upcoming fight against Joe Goodall is in serious danger of being postponed, after testing positive for COVID-19.
Speaking from their training base in California, Justis’s father Rocky confirmed the bad news.
“It’s pretty much blindsided us,” he told Wide World of Sports.
READ MORE: Mark Taylor’s player ratings from the MCG Ashes Test
READ MORE: Aussie debutant claims Johnny Mullagh Medal in sporting poetry
READ MORE: England great tips Ashes horror for years to come amid nightmare
The 22-year-old is recovering, but remains under the weather.
“He’s still got the sore throat, he’s still coughing and he runs out of breath. We went to the doctors this morning and just walking back, he was breathless. But he’s in a lot better shape than a couple of days ago.
“He had cold and hot sweats, his body was aching – I initially thought it was flu but after a couple of days he was in bad shape.
When he was well enough to walk down to the testing site, Justis received the dreaded email shortly after, confirming he had tested positive for COVID.
That email now looks likely to force a postponement to Huni’s much-anticipated fight with Goodall in Brisbane on February 4.
Goodall, a Commonwealth Games medallist, was set to be the biggest test of Huni’s extremely promising career so far – both men are undefeated in their professional careers.
“We’ll be stuck in this unit until next Tuesday when we get another test, and hopefully it’s a negative, but we’re just running out of time,” Rocky said.
The timeline isn’t looking promising – even with a negative test next week, it would only leave 30 days of preparation time.
“He’s not fit, so I don’t know at this point but I’m just not sure we’ll be able to [take the fight] at this stage,” Rocky said.
“Not only do we have to quarantine here, but when we fly home we’ve got to do another set. It’s just crazy times.
“I’m sure he’ll be devastated if the fight doesn’t go ahead, but he understands that he needs to go into this fight 100 per cent fit, and there’s just no way he’s going to.
Huni’s camp were ‘super careful’ during their America trip, Rocki said. Masks on everywhere, and even an offer to spend Christmas with some LA-based family was declined.
The Hunis aren’t focused on when the match with Goodall, a Commonwealth Games medallist, would take place – the priority is Justis’s health.
“He’s just trying to get through this,” Rocki said.
“He’s in the next room and I can still hear him coughing.”
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!