Boxing ban urged as Australian pugilist dies

Sydney: The Australian Medical Association (AMA) called for a ban on boxing on Tuesday following the death of a 28-year-old fighter after he was knocked unconscious in the ring.

Davey Browne Jr died early on Tuesday from his injuries from an IBF super-featherweight regional title fight four days previously, after his family authorised his life-support to be turned off in a Sydney hospital.

The father-of-two was knocked out 30 seconds from the end of the super featherweight 12-round contest against Carlo Magali of the Philippines, and collapsed on his stool before being hospitalised in critical condition with brain injuries.

AMA vice-president Dr Stephen Parnis said it was time to ban boxing. "One punch can kill -- whether you are outside a pub on a Friday night or in a boxing ring – and this is the thing that causes young lives to be ended so traumatically," he said, according to Australian broadcaster ABC's website.

"It's a terrible tragedy for a young man with a young family, but the fact that it was entirely avoidable just leaves a real sense of bitterness. The way that boxing is designed there will be these times inevitably where someone will get bleeding or irreversible damage to the brain and they will either lose their life or end up with brain damage. "That is why the AMA thinks that we cannot continue with it (boxing)," he said.

New South Wales sports minister Stuart Ayres said the Combat Sports Authority, a state government agency, will cooperate fully with police in their investigation.

"My thoughts are with David's family and friends during this tragic time," Ayres said in a statement.

In March, Braydon Smith died two days after losing a fight in his home town in Toowoomba, Queensland. He had collapsed 90 minutes after the bout.