Referees in Leonard fights

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by MrMarvel, Oct 3, 2009.


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  1. MrMarvel

    MrMarvel Well-Known Member Full Member

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    I should have included judges in my question, as well. The Hagler and second Hearns fights follows the pattern of referees shaping outcomes in Leonard's factor despite what was happening in the ring.

    My own view is that judges and referees were fans who wanted so badly for Leonard to be what the hype promised them he would be that they acted in ways that fulfilled prophecy. Sometimes Leonard's opponents' handlers bought into the hype, for example Arcel and Stewart. Folks probably weren't really even consciously aware of the way they were being manipulated by the hype.

    You can see the bias in media coverage of Leonard's fights, as well. In the second Duran fight, hardly anybody was interested in finding out why Duran quit. Almost everybody jumped on the interpretation that Leonard made Duran quit. The motive seems obvious to me. And in the first Hearns fight, journalists raised the roof about the 10-9 rounds in Leonard's favor. For the first time journalists discovered the 10-point must system and criticized the judges for not using all the points they could. Why? Because then the fight wouldn't have been so close. They wanted lopsided rounds so that the two rounds Leonard did win through the first 12 would be not interpreted as a revelation that Tommy was the much better boxer. The frame told them Hearns with the puncher and Leonard was the boxer. Seeing Leonard complete befuddled by Hearns really bothered them. Then, just as suddenly as they had discovered the 10-point must they forgot it and never made an issue of it again.

    If the Hearns fight was not a premature stoppage then the Howard stoppage was the right call. But neither were the right calls. Slow motion replay reveals that Leonard was missing most of his shots and both of his opponents were not seriously hurt.
     
    MrMarvel, Oct 4, 2009
    MrMarvel, Oct 4, 2009
    #16
  2. Robbi

    Robbi Marvelous Full Member

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    You really have a sour taste in your mouth regarding Leonard. A very bitter man indeed, MrMarvel. Looks like Leonard had to hammer his opponents unconscious for you to agree with most of the stoppages in his career.
     
    Robbi, Oct 4, 2009
    Robbi, Oct 4, 2009
    #17
  3. Mantequilla

    Mantequilla Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Wasn't it the ref that said he thought Kalule had told him he didn't want to continue, to justify the stoppage.You can see Kalule gesture in surprise when he waves it off.

    I've read various about the fight on the net about language mixup(the ref didn't speak english well i think) etc. but nothing with Kalule saying he didn't want to go on.
     
    Mantequilla, Oct 4, 2009
    Mantequilla, Oct 4, 2009
    #18
  4. TheGreatA

    TheGreatA Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    But then Kalule came unglued. Firing from the right side, Leonard caught him with two smashes to the head, drove him into a corner with another right and hammered him twice before he could get away. It was a momentary respite. Another right drove Kalule back to the ropes, and a thunderclap left-right-left-right combination—savage punches—sent him crashing; Kalule, dazed, was up at six. When Carlos Berrocal, the referee imported from Panama, asked him if he was O.K., Kalule shook his head. Berrocal wigwagged a ceasefire. The time was 2:59 of the ninth round.


    At that point, Leonard, a reformed gymnast, did a full 360-degree, no-hands flip, a stunt he had practiced in secret. Only while in midflight did Leonard realize, to his horror, that he had neglected to allow for the restriction of his protective cup. "Oh my God," Leonard thought as he spun, "what have I done?" Fortunately, he landed on his feet. But then he always does.


    Later on Kalule's people would protest that their man had been unable to understand Berrocal, who speaks only Spanish, which is not one of Kalule's four languages.


    Still, it really didn't matter if Berrocal could speak a dozen languages and Kalule understood them all. The Ugandan wasn't filing any protests. As he told New York sportscaster Bill Mazer, who was doing the closed-circuit broadcast, "I told the referee to stop it. I didn't want to be like Leon Spinks."

    http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1124625/3/index.htm

    Also:

    http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AJ&pg=6696,2803781&dq=ayub+kalule+ray+leonard
     
    TheGreatA, Oct 4, 2009
    TheGreatA, Oct 4, 2009
    #19
  5. Stevie G

    Stevie G Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    That's my call,also.
     
    Stevie G, Oct 5, 2009
    Stevie G, Oct 5, 2009
    #20
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