Brooklyn native Heather “The Heat” Hardy said she never wanted to retire from boxing — she had no choice. The former WBO featherweight champion, now 43, suffers from headaches, seizures, convulsions, and muscle spasms, symptoms consistent with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain condition linked to repeated head trauma.
Hardy filed a lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court, the first of its kind by a female boxer, accusing her doctors, promoters, and equipment sponsors of clearing her to fight when she was medically unfit. She also said they denied her mandatory health insurance.
“The boxing industry catastrophically failed Heather Hardy,” she said in her filing.
Hardy began boxing professionally in 2012 to support her infant daughter. She fought in 27 bouts, winning 24 and losing 3, earning $236,450 in total.
“They filled their pockets with her pain and discarded her when she broke,” said her lawyer Priya Chaudhry.
Lawsuit Alleges Medical Negligence and Insurance Denial
Court documents accuse Dr. Nitin Sethi, chief medical officer of the New York State Athletic Commission, of misinterpreting or fabricating MRI results, allowing Hardy to fight when she should have been sidelined.
Hardy also alleged that promoters withheld millions in required medical insurance, which could have funded treatment to slow her condition’s progression. She said the Athletic Commission knew about her declining health yet continued to issue her fight licenses.
“The Commission kept approving her even as her condition worsened,” the suit stated.
Hardy’s final fight occurred on August 5, 2023, when she absorbed 278 punches from Amanda Serrano at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. She lost by unanimous decision. Months later, Hardy temporarily lost her vision for three days while training. A commission-recommended doctor told her to see a neurologist, but she couldn’t afford the visit.
Hardy’s lawsuit names Everlast Worldwide, its parent company Frasers Group, Boxing Insider Promotions, and Lou DiBella Promotions as defendants.
Legal Battle Sparks Industry Backlash
Keith Sullivan, lawyer for Boxing Insider, dismissed the allegations as false.
“I proved the claims were untrue and provided documents to her attorneys,” he said. “This lawsuit should not continue.”
Lou DiBella’s attorney, Alex Dombroff, labeled the suit “sensationalist fiction” and asked the court to dismiss it. Several boxing insiders called the filing a “shakedown,” noting that Hardy did not name Most Valuable Promotions, co-owned by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, which promoted her final fight.
“Heather should never have been in the ring with Serrano,” one insider said.
Another claimed other factors, such as domestic abuse, heavy drinking, and an e-bike crash, may have contributed to her condition. One source alleged Hardy admitted to drinking a bottle of wine nightly for ten years, though the video could not be verified.
Hardy has spoken openly about surviving domestic violence and said NYU Langone doctors linked her alcohol use to neurological damage from her boxing career.
Representatives for Everlast, Dr. Sethi, and Most Valuable Promotions have not responded to media requests. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and reimbursement of medical expenses, marking a pivotal moment in boxing’s reckoning with athlete health and accountability.
