Yu Delu and Cao Yupeng banned for snooker match-fixing
Cao Yupeng of China plays a shot (credit: Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Yu Delu and Cao Yupeng have been handed lengthy bans from professional snooker after pleading guilty to match-fixing.
Yu has been banned from snooker for 10 years and nine months and Cao banned for six years, with three and a half years suspended.
A tribunal found that Yu engaged in deliberate and premeditated corruption to secure substantial financial gain for his friends/associates and himself.
He was involved in match-fixing on five occasions in five tournaments and his activity covers a period of two-and-a-half years.
In one match, the stakes placed on the outcome totalled £65,000, which would have generated a profit of £86,000.
Yu’s suspension is the longest since Stephen Lee was handed a 12-year ban for match-fixing in 2013.
Yu was also ordered to pay £20,823.80 towards the WPBSA costs.
Yu Delu will be sidelined for a decade
Cao, meanwhile, admitted to fixing the outcome of three matches in 2016 and failing to fully cooperate with the WPBSA enquiry.
He was initially suspended for eight years but was given credit for his plea of guilty which reduced the suspension to six years – two and a half of which will be served unconditionally, while the remaining three and a half years will be suspended provided Cao assists with anti-corruption work.
He was ordered to pay £15,558 towards the WPBSA costs.
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson said: “It is very sad when talented players are attracted to the opportunity to make money from fixing matches.
“The WPBSA has very effective prevention and monitoring processes that protect the sport.
“Where players ignore this, they risk their careers and they will be caught.
“Cao Yupeng has shown true remorse and he will assist the WPBSA in player education and in its fight against corruption, which is reflected in his reduced sanction.
“The sanctions handed down to these players by the Independent Tribunal reflect how seriously the WPBSA treats such cases.
“This was a lengthy and difficult enquiry for which the Tribunal commended the WPBSA for its skill and professionalism in the investigation and presentation of the case.”
There is no suggestion any of the opponents were aware of the match-fixing plan.
Both Players have 28 days to appeal the decision of the tribunal.
Yu Delu’s five fixed matches:
Indian Open qualifiers: WON 4-3 v Martin McCrudden – February 2015
Paul Hunter Classic: LOST 4-1 v Dominic Dale in Germany – August 2015
Welsh Open: WON 4-3 v Ian Glover – January 2016
European Masters qualifiers: LOST 4-1 v Michael Georgiou – August 2017
Shanghai Masters: LOST 5-3 v Kurt Maflin – November 2017
Yu won two of the five fixed matches, but had arranged for the correct score to be 4-3 to either player.
Cao Yupeng’s three fixed matches:
Welsh Open: LOST 4-1 v Ali Carter – January 2016
Indian Open qualifiers: LOST 4-0 v Stuart Bingham – June 2016
UK Championship: LOST 6-1 v Stephen Maguire – November 2016
Cao said that he received £5,000 for each of the matches he fixed.