Look, Usyk won that fight...Chavez-Taylor all over again.

Uysk won by stoppage, period.

I know there was a second left in the round, and I feel awful for Rico, who, by the way, I told everyone would give Usyk one of his toughest fights. But those of us who are old enough to remember have been through this before with Chavez-Taylor.

The bottom line is, "DEFEND YOURSELF AT ALL TIMES." It is not the job the ref to keep time...repeat, it is not the job of the ref to keep time. It is the job of the ref to protect the safety of the fighters. Rico was knocked down, got up, and was absorbing punishment to a degree the ref didn't like. Fight was stopped.

I feel terrible for Rico like I did for Taylor. But that does not mean the ref did anything wrong. And unlike Chavez-Taylor, Usyk had another round to work with.

One final thought--anyone who is saying this was a fix is out of their minds. Turkyi hates Usyk for the same reason Warren and Hearn do...they can't make money off a Ukrainian. That is why Chisora, Fury and Joshua were gifted rounds. Tukyi would have loved to split up the titles tonight and have one for Fury.

That is all.

 

Yes.

 

And that is fair. But the impugning of a ref that has to protect the fighters is not.

 

It doesn't fall flat on his face because it is a different ref. Each ref officaites according to his own conscience.

Also doesn't fall flat on its face because Howard Foster was vastly criticized for not stopping it early, so you have actually cited something that works against the point you are trying to make.

 

You get it, sir!

Thanks. I have tried to tell him the same thing.

 

This is not possible. Each ref is charged with protecting the fighters and does so to his own conscience. AND AGAIN, citing Warldley-Dubois, where the ref was universally criticized for letting it go on too long, is working against the narrative that you are trying to sell.

You have literally argued against your own point, here.

 

Did you see him defending himself from that angle? Parrying a punch? Slipping? I just saw him standing there, swaying around.