Former British boxing champion Gary Mason has died after being involved in a crash with a van while riding his bike. It happened in Sandy Lane South, Wallington, south London, on Thursday.
\nThe 48-year-old former heavyweight – who trained with Frank Bruno and fought Lennox Lewis – was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver, 43, who was driving a white Vauxhall van, was arrested on suspicion of causing death by careless driving.
\nHe was taken to a south London police station before being bailed pending further inquiries. A police spokesman said: “Officers were alerted at about 6.15am yesterday to a van in collision with a bicycle on Sandy Lane South, near the junction with Woodcote Road, Wallington. “The cyclist, aged 48 years, was pronounced dead at the scene.” A post-mortem examination is due to be held at St Helier Hospital mortuary and an inquest will be opened at Croydon Coroner’s Court.
\nMason’s former sparring partner Frank Bruno, said: “I’m very sorry about his death, particularly the circumstances of how it happened. “Both of us were plying our trade at an early age and I had a lot of respect for the guy.”
\nMason was known for his strong chin and hard-hitting boxing style. During his career he fought a total of 38 bouts, losing only one fight to Lennox Lewis. The then champion was favourite to win the fight, with many pundits believing he had the advantage over the 25-year-old Lewis.
\nHowever, a cut to Mason’s eye early on saw the referee stop the contest in the seventh round. Mason retired from boxing and went on to have a varied career, including brief spells as a pundit for Sky and as a rugby league player with the London Broncos.
\nMason’s agent in the mid-1990s, Dave Davies, said: “He was a real character, a south London boy trying to do well. “He was a bit of a handful but he was a great guy. He will certainly be missed.”
\nSource: web.orange.co.uk<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Former British boxing champion Gary Mason has died after being involved in a crash with a van while riding his bike. It happened in Sandy Lane South, Wallington, south London, on Thursday. The 48-year-old former heavyweight – who trained with Frank Bruno and fought Lennox Lewis – was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-273127","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n