When the ref gives a fighter an unfair advantage

I agree with most of this.

Parker was looking to fight on the inside as much as mayweather.

 

The pre-fight planning you mean when Higgins picked the referee? Well that back fired then didn't it lol.

 

@3rdegree

Why do you disagree with Kevin Barry?

 

The point is that you’ve clearly stated in your op that Joshua was the beneficiary then absolutely undermined your whole argument by saying that “we’ll never know”.

My second observation is that you clearly imply Joshua benefited as much from poor refereeing as Wilder did which is not the case at all!

 

ok no logic there

 

@3rdegree

Neither Joshua or Parker were allowed to fight on the inside.


Wilder was 'checked' by the ref, but Ortiz wasn't after being knocked down

 

Ortiz should have been checked by a doctor at the beginning of the next round following his knockdown.

That would have been 'fair'.

 

On the inside, Joshua was landing uppercuts and hooks while Parker was content with body shots, one or two which were kidney punches. Parker was the one initiating clinches when they came together not Joshua. These two facts indicate that Parker was the one benefiting from the referees early interventions, the truth however is that neither benefited to any significant extent.

 

In boxing the referee's job is to make sure the home/featured fighter gets home with the win, by hindering the opponent as much as possible, making a couple of bogus calls and maybe even stopping the fight for something ridiculous.
In other words, the referee is just doing the job he's paid to do.

Seriously though, I see fans on both sides defending such practises, while they're blatant. Stop defending it, because that's why it keeps on happening (regurlarly) on both sides of the pond.

With an inpartial referee, a lot of fights would have almost certainly went the other way, some would have been toss-ups and others would have ended the same. Still it happens, constantly and everyone knows it.
Wilder might have lost, Joshua vs Parker might have developed differently....