Barstool Sports Under Investigation for Jose Canseco ‘Taking a Dive’ in Rough ’N Rowdy Boxing Match

Barstool Sports under investigation? Trouble may be brewing for Rough n Rowdy boxing series by Barstool. A few weekends back former Major League slugger Jose Canseco  got paid a lot of money to fight one of the Stoolies. He was reportedly paid $1 million to headline their latest Rough ’N Rowdy boxing night.

Jose appeared to take a dive the moment he entered the ring.

PUT THIS ON A DAMN POSTER. #RnR13 pic.twitter.com/RC8Wsy808Q

— Rough N’ Rowdy (@roughnrowdy) February 7, 2021

Even Portnoy thought he took a dive.

Jose 100% took a dive. We paid half up front and he got double if he won. We thought that would ensure he’d fight. We were wrong.

— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) February 6, 2021

No refund was issued for the $20 pay-per-view.

Now they are being investigated for the results of the fight.

Via Play Michigan:

Canseco, the 56-year-old former slugger, took to the ring against “Billy Football,” a Barstool intern in the Rough ’N Rowdy 13 main event in Charles Town, W.V.

The event was hosted by Hollywood Casino, which is owned by Penn National Gaming. It was a natural fit as Rough ’N Rowdy is a Barstool property, and Penn owns a 36% stake in Barstool, its online gambling partner.

Michigan sports betting launched on Jan. 22, and the Barstool Sportsbook was one of 10 operators on the starting line.

Barstool founder Dave Portnoy and others have spent time recently in Michigan pumping the brand through its partnership with Detroit’s Greektown Casino, another Penn property.

In addition to professional boxing matches through the IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO, the Michigan Gaming Control Board also approved wagers on fights approved by state athletic commissions (sanctioned fights only).

Rough ’N Rowdy 13 was sanctioned by the State Athletic Commission in West Virginia, which was noted by MGCB spokesperson Mary Kay Bean.

Leon Ramsey, the commission’s chairman, said an investigation is underway into the match. Rough ‘N Rowdy cards are sanctioned on an event-by-event basis and no future dates are currently on the calendar. The commission, made up of appointees of the governor, will review future events as they apply.

Applications for sanctioning are due within 30 days of an event, Ramsey said, and he expects the investigation to last a few weeks.

“I think everybody was expecting a better fight, and then something like this,” he said. “Of course I feel it would need a little further looking into for sure.”

But let’s put all of the above into clear terms:

• Barstool put on and promoted the Canseco fight.
• Barstool Sportsbook took bets on the fight.
• The founder of Barstool Sports and the face of Barstool Sportsbook insisted Canseco threw the fight for some reason.

Hopefully this is last time we see Jose Canseco in a “Sanctioned” Fight.

They should refund anyone who paid money to see this garbage.

Not a good look for regulated sports betting on a sanctioned fight.

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