FIGHT OF THE WEEK 12: Bobby Chacon vs Cornelius Boza Edwards II

This is the greatest 12 round fight ever in my opinion and it's my third favourite fight of all time.

 

What a fight!

 

I scored it a draw this time, 113-113. I gave Chacon 1,2,11,12, Boza-Edwards 3,4,5,6,7,10, and I scored 8,9 EVEN. I scored two point rounds in ALL knockdown rounds of the fight, giving Chacon 2 point rounds in 1,2, and 12, giving CBE a 2 point round in 3. IMO, BC was scoring effectively to the body throughout the fight while CBE was scoring effectively to the head. BC's punches were "investment" type punches, the body shots that were going to weaken CBE later and they did, but BC's face opened up early in the fight and caused him problems. CBE was barely hanging on at the end and BC could have used another knockdown or a stoppage, but he was tired too.

It was a hard fight to score, if one gives BC only 10-9 rounds for either the first or second knockdown, CBE probably wins, and there is a good argument for making one or both 10-9 rounds. CBE probably would have carried both rounds without the knockdowns on most cards, but I felt that BC was effective enough to the body to get two point rounds.

I checked my score from the last time we scored this one for FOTW. I scored for BC 113-112 and gave him 1,2,6,9,12, CBE 3,4,5,7,8,11, and scored 10 EVEN, with 10-8 rounds for all knockdown rounds. My card was different, but my final score was similar.

Pacheco was terrible, he could ruin any fight as a commentator.

 

Yeah, I remember that well. Flip Homansky kept checking on Chacon and Pacheco kept saying that 'of course his corner are going to say he's okay!' and complaining that Homansky was being swayed by what his corner was saying to not stop the fight. But Chacon dropping Boza in the final round seemed to finally shut him up.

 

I also had it a draw. I found it very tough to score this fight.

Round 1 Boza 10-9
Round 2 Chacon 10-8*
Round 3 Boza 10-8
Round 4 Boza 10-9
Round 5 Chacon 10-9
Round 6 Chacon 10-9
Round 7 Even
Round 8 Even
Round 9 Boza 10-9
Round 10 Boza 10-9
Round 11 Even
Round 12 Chacon 10-7

Total 114-114

Notes: I scored round 2 for Chacon 10-8, but Boza had won the majority of the round up til that point. It could have been just a 1-point round as well, in Chacon's favour.
I had three rounds even. I don't like scoring even rounds, but I honestly could not seperate the fighters in these rounds. So I sat on the fence in these rounds.

Round 12 was big for Chacon. I gave him 10-7 here because he dominated the round and scored a heavy knockdown.
Boza's legs were gone and I'm surprised Chacon started clowning instead of trying to take Boza out.

What a wild, action-packed fight between two fighters with amazing will and conditioning. It was a very tough fight to score, but a great fight to watch.

 

If I scored this video 100 times I suspect I'd never score the rounds exactly the same twice. Then, if I saw it from a different camera angle...it might look completely different. IMO, you might have to be at ringside to get an accurate score on this one? In some rounds it looked like BC was taking a beating, but he didn't seem hurt and he fired back so if it had been filmed from the other side it might have been a big round for BC?

I almost scored round 12 as a 10-7 too, and it seemed that BC could have scored another knockdown or even caused the fight to be stopped but he didn't. BC looked smaller than CBE but again, everything might have looked and sounded different from ringside.

 

No doubt. It's very different scoring from ringside, as you know.
I really struggled to score this. Like you, I'm sure on a different day I could have come up with another score. But in the interests of fairness, I'll let the score stand. The judges only have one chance to get it right, so I put myself in exactly that position as well.

I have to marvel at Chacon. He looks almost happy to take punishment sometimes. His fourth fight with Bazooka Limon remains one of the most insane wars I've ever witnessed. What an amazing little fighter.

 

Bobby Chacon v Cornelius Boza Edwards

Round 1: 10-10 Even
Round 2: 10-8 Chacon (scores a knockdown)
Round 3: 10-8 Boza (scores a knockdown)
Round 4: 10-9 Boza
Round 5: 10-9 Boza
Round 6: 10-9 Boza
Round 7: 10-9 Boza
Round 8: 10-9 Chacon
Round 9: 10-10 Even
Round 10: 10-9 Chacon
Round 11: 10-9 Chacon
Round 12: 10-8 Chacon (scores a knockdown)

Total: 114-113 Chacon (actual scores: 115-113, 115-112 and 117-111 all for Chacon)

In a word; phenomenal!

 

Even now, nearly 40 years later, this is an astonishing fight. Last round probably clinched it for Chacon in my eyes.
This fight confirmed Boza as a darling of American TV and he was barely sighted in a British ring again.

 

Bobby Chacon v Cornelius Boza-Edwards 2

Second time I've scored this and second time I've scored it to Boza. The only difference in my previous card and this one was the opening round KD which I scored 10-8 last time and 10-9 this time. It's a judgement call but Boza was winning and it was such a flash knockdown in the very last seconds that a whole two points off seemed disproportionate.

The overall scoring comes down to how effective you think Chacon was on the back foot. Boza seemed to be dictating the action for much of the fight and Chacon fought back in bursts which got the crowd going but didn't negate the good work Boza had done in the rest of the round.

I watched the fight with the sound off this time and it does put a bit of a different slant on it, particularly the cut. Without Percheco going on about it, it seems like a minor distraction in the 7th and 8th rounds when Richard Steele has Chacon's eye inspected by Flip Homansky. Chacon's corner seemed to keep it under control after that so it didn't become as significant a factor as Pacheco obviously thought it was.

I suppose it's possible to argue the final round could have been a 10-7 to Chacon and that plus a first round 10-8 would make a draw on my card but I think Boza did enough, despite being on rubbery legs and not having any sting left in his punches, to not lose any further points than just the knockdown.

1 10-9 (flash knockdown in the final seconds gives Chacon the round that Boza was winning)
2 10-8 (Boza dominated but this was a proper knockdown. It's maybe a 10-8 1/2)
3 8-10 (Boza returns the favour with a knockdown of his own)
4 9-10
5 9-10
6 10-10 (Chacon fought well off back foot but shipped punishment too and got cut too)
7 9-10 (first examination by the doctor)
8 9-10 (second examination by the doctor)
9 9-10
10 10-9 (close)
11 9-10
12 10-8 (amazing final round)

Chacon 112-114 Boza

 

A very reasonable position. Nice post. As you say, it does depend on how well a person thinks Chacon was doing on the back foot.
Also agree with you on Pacheco. The cut looked bad, but it didn't seem to hamper Chacon.
Pacheco would have you believe Chacon was nearing death.