Boxing's Worst Decisions

[elvaracco]

Last Sunday, our own Pacquiao got victimized by a bad judging decision. Pero Pacman was not the first Pinoy who got robbed. In '96 and '64 Olympics, Onyok Velasco and Anthony Villanueva got robbed by of gold medals when they fell victims to mafia-like bad decisions.

 

Its just sad pag matalo ang rightful victor dahil sa mga incompetent/ corrupt judges. Just wonder what would be the all time worst boxing decisions...

[SaintPeter5858]

Pacman lately

[SaintPeter5858]

De La Hoya- Mosley fight was also considered by many experts that way

[BrightestStar]

A website mentioned about the highly contested decision between the Andy Lee and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. fight.

[mr_machismo]

roy jones jr lost an amateur fight during olympics to a chinese. He was obviously winning by points and total punches landed but the worst decision happened.

[JackEndRoll]

Sugar Ray Leonard decision win over Marvelous Marvin Hagler is also controversial. Hagler was so disgusted about the loss that he never wore a boxing glove after that.

[lanch]

ODH vs Felix Trinidad

[Marky Melgar]

I think Whitaker- Chavez still takes the cake for worst decision

[photographer]

 

Marvin Hagler vs Sugar Ray Leonard

 

The Fight

Hagler's next challenger was Sugar Ray Leonard, who was returning to the ring after a three-year retirement. During the pre-fight negotiations, in return for granting Hagler a larger share of the purse Leonard obtained several conditions which would be crucial to his strategy; a large ring (24x24ft), 12oz gloves and the fight was to be over 12 - not 15 - rounds. Leonard was 2 years younger, had half as many fights, and unbeknown to Hagler had engaged in several 'real' fights behind closed doors (i.e. gloves, rounds, a referee, judges and no head gear) in order to shake off his ring rust. The fight took place at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on April 6, 1987. Hagler was the betting favorite.

 

Hagler, a natural southpaw, opened the fight boxing out of an orthodox stance. After the quick and slick Leonard won the first two rounds on all three scorecards, Hagler started the third round as a southpaw. Hagler did better, though Leonard's superior speed and boxing skill kept him in the fight. But by the fifth, Leonard, who was moving a lot, began to tire and Hagler started to get closer. As he tired Leonard began to clinch with more frequency (in total referee Richard Steele gave him over 30 warnings for holding, although never deducted a point). Hagler buckled Leonard's knees with a right uppercut near the end of the round, which finished with Leonard on the ropes. Hagler continued to score effectively in round six. Leonard, having slowed down, was obliged to fight more and run less. In rounds seven and eight, Hagler's southpaw jab was landing solidly and Leonard's counter flurries were less frequent. Round nine was the most exciting round of the fight. Hagler hurt Leonard with a left cross and pinned him in a corner. Leonard was in trouble, then furiously tried to fight his way out of the corner. The action see-sawed back and forth for the rest of the round, with each man having his moments. Round ten was tame by comparison, as the pace slowed after the furious action of the previous round. Clearly tiring, Leonard boxed well in the eleventh. Every time Hagler scored, Leonard came back with something flashier, if not as effective. In the final round, Hagler continued to chase Leonard. He hit Leonard with a big left hand and backed him into a corner. Leonard responded with a flurry and danced away with Hagler in pursuit. The fight ended with Hagler and Leonard exchanging along the ropes. Hagler began dancing in celebration of his performance while Leonard alternately collapsed to the canvas and raised both his arms in triumph.^[/url] Leonard threw 629 punches and landed 306, while Hagler threw 792 and landed 291.

 

Leonard was announced as winner by split decision, which remains hotly disputed to this day.

 

 

Reaction

Official ringside judge JoJo Guerra, whose 118-110 scorecard was derided in many quarters, commented that:

 

“ Leonard outpunched Hagler, outsmarted him, outboxed him. He looked just great. Sugar Ray Leonard was making him miss a lot, and then counterpunching him. Sugar Ray Leonard was beating him to the punch. They should call him Marvellous Sugar Ray Leonard. Boxing is the art of self-defense, and Sugar Ray was in command at all times. He was very fast and he was very clever. He made Marvin Hagler come to him. He dictated the fight. ” Judge Dave Moretti, who scored it 115-113 for Leonard:

 

“ Obviously, Hagler was the aggressor, but he was not the effective aggressor. You can't chase and get hit and chase and get hit, and get credit for it. Besides, the hardest punching was by Leonard. ” Lou Filippo, who scored it 115-113 for Hagler and felt that Hagler's bodyshots and aggression earned him the nod, said:

 

“ Hagler was doing all the work. The referee, Richard Steele, warned Leonard at least once every round about holding. Leonard fought in spurts. Leonard would run in and grab and hold. He did what he had to do. But I can't see a guy holding that much and getting points for it. ” Hugh McIlvanney, commenting in the British Sunday Times and Sports Illustrated:

 

“ What Ray Leonard pulled off in his split decision over Hagler was an epic illusion. He had said beforehand that the way to beat Hagler was to give him a distorted picture. But this shrewdest of fighters knew it was even more important to distort the picture for the judges. His plan was to "steal" rounds with a few flashy and carefully timed flurries and to make the rest of each three-minute session as unproductive as possible for Hagler by circling briskly away from the latter's persistent pursuit. When he made his sporadic attacking flourishes, he was happy to exaggerate hand speed at the expense of power, and neither he nor two of the scorers seemed bothered by the fact that many of the punches landed on the champion's gloves and arms. ” McIlvanny also referred to Budd Schulberg's contention about a 'compound optical illusion', namely that simply being more competitive than expected meant that Leonard appeared more effective and to be doing more than he actually was.^[19] Harry Gibbs, the British judge who ironically had been rejected by the Hagler camp, said he also scored it for Hagler.

 

Jim Murray, long-time sports columnist for the Los Angeles Times felt that Leonard deservedly got the decision, arguing that Leonard landed more punches and showed better defense and ring generalship, and writing:

 

“ It wasn't even close...He didn't just outpoint Hagler, he exposed him. He made him look like a guy chasing a bus. In snowshoes. Leonard repeatedly beat Hagler to the punch. When he did, he hit harder. He hit more often. He made Hagler into what he perceived him to be throughout his career - a brawler, a swarmer, a man who could club you to death only if you stood there and let him. If you moved, he was lost. ” The scorecards from the ringside press attest to the closeness of the fight (6-5, 3 drawn) more pundits awarded the fight to Leonard rather than to Hagler, although counting those who scored it even, more felt Hagler deserved to keep his title than didn't:

 

• Associated Press: 117-112 Hagler
• New York Daily News: 117-111 Leonard
• New York Times: 114-114
• New York Post: 114-114
• Newsday: 115-114 Hagler
• Chicago Sun-Times: 115-114 Hagler
• Chicago Tribune: 7-5 Hagler

• Houston Chronicle: 115-114 Leonard
• Washington Post: 114-114
• Boston Globe: 117-111 Leonard
• Boston Herald 116-113 Leonard
• Baltimore Sun: 7-5 Leonard
• Oakland Tribune: 117-112 Leonard
• San Jose Mercury-News: 116-115 Hagler

Rematch

Hagler requested a rematch but Leonard chose to retire again (the third of five high profile retirements announced by Leonard), having said he would do so beforehand. Leonard vacated his middleweight champions title at his immediate post-fight press conference. Hagler himself retired from boxing in June 1988, declaring that he was "tired of waiting" for Leonard to grant him a rematch. In 1990 Leonard finally offered him a rematch which reportedly would have earned him $15m, but he declined. By then he had settled down to a new life as an actor in and was now uninterested in boxing. He said "A while ago, yeah, I wanted him so bad, but I'm over that.

 

 

[ADAM]

Hagler vs Leonard

Castillo vs Mayweather

Pacquiao vs Bradley

[crunk]

roy jones jr lost an amateur fight during olympics to a chinese. He was obviously winning by points and total punches landed but the worst decision happened.

 

 

I think it was a Korean boxer.

[Vegasboy32]

Just like in basketball referees may win you or cost you a game through the judgement calls they make during the game. Just move on and just give credit where credit is due. Hindi maganda kasi na magrereklamo tayo na dinaya tayo ng referee or ng judges lumalabas tuloy ang pagka iyakin natin.

[Super Green]

Pacman Bradley fight wtf.

[*kalel*]

Onyok velasco's gold medal round nung 96 olympics ba yun?

[*kalel*]

Onyok velasco's gold medal round nung 96 olympics ba yun?