On this day in 2006 Britain’s former world boxing champion Naseem Hamed was jailed for 15 months and banned from driving for four years after he was found guilty of dangerous driving in a high-profile court case.
The former multiple world featherweight champion admitted driving his £320,000 McLaren Mercedes at dangerous speeds after causing a three-car crash on the outskirts of Sheffield which left a 39-year-old VW Golf driver in intensive care with multiple fractures.
The court heard how Hamed - known to boxing fans as ‘Prince Naseem’ - had four previous driving convictions amid witness statements which accused him of driving “like a maniac” in his recently-acquired vehicle which had a registration number of NAS 1 and was capable of reaching 0-60mph in 3.8 seconds.
Hamed was to controversially serve only four months of his sentence before an early release but it was rumoured he was forced to pay out almost £1 million in a separate civil case. The prison sentence also saw Hamed stripped of his MBE.