I was wondering if you guys could give me your opinions on this. Watching Cotto/Foreman last night, I thought Mercante did an outstanding job of making smart, efficient calls. But I also thought he was giving an awful lot of encouragement to Foreman, telling him he was doing great, calling him "Champ," telling him to walk it off etc. Is it really appropriate for a referee to be so vocally supportive of fighters during the fight? Shouldn't the trainers be the only ones to push their athletes? Is it a little unfair to the other guy (in this case, Cotto)? And is there a fine line (for the referee) between admonishing a guy to "show me something" and flat-out encouraging him to stay in a fight that he might not want to stay in, especially if it's in conflict with the wishes of his corner? Basically, is it the ref's place to be supportive, or should he only be as objective as possible? Thanks!
There were a couple moments were it seemed like he was being an ******* to Foreman. lol The whole "Suck it up" almost sounding like "don't be a *****, let's fight!" :rofl
Mercante was terrible!! He should never be allowed in a boxing area again!! I think his fights would be better off if he wasn't there and the fighters went on the honour system.
