THE TSS Q ‘n A: Referee Kenny Bayless

Published

11 years ago

March 19, 2014

Referees in sports are there to protect the athletes and a byproduct of that objective is that sometimes the quest to protect the participants disappoints the fans. You might not like it and they don’t do it intentionally, but it’s the referee’s job to, especially in boxing, protect the fighters from themselves.

If a boxing referee thinks we have seen enough of a fight, then we’ve seen enough. The concept to stop a fight is simple but the process can be complicated. There are levels to this game, as they say. And there are levels to the art of refereeing. Referees are caretakers of boxing, present to protect what is in the best interest of the fighters’ health and life longevity.

My conversation with Las Vegas-based referee Kenny Bayless teaches us about the referee instincts. “It’s a trigger in us, “ Kenny Bayless told me about the moment when deciding a fight should be halted. “If we see that he has had enough and that trigger goes off, you just don’t pull back from it.”

Bayless went to school in the Bay Area at Cal State Hayward and moved to Vegas in 1972 to teach health and physical education, not to referee.

Today, he is one of the most respected referees in boxing. Fighters are supposed to protect themselves at all time. But he explains how referees are there at times to protect the fighters from themselves, or their egos. And when referees draw attention to themself, make a sound, deduct points or God forbid stop a fight before the bloodthirsty mob is satisfied, then they become the bad guy, the focus of fans’ ire.Bayless tells how he got started in the referee profession, explains the art of movement and verbal command, and enlightens us about ways to read a fighters’ body language in the ring. Bayless also discusses some of the most memorable fights he was involved in, including Floyd Mayweather/Shane Mosley, Amir Khan/Danny Garcia, and Manny Pacquiao/Juan Manuel Marquez IV.

Ray Markarian: What made you want to become a referee?

Kenny Bayless: It’s interesting because I was actually recruited to come to Vegas because they were lacking African-American teachers in the area. But I learned real fast that there were not many African-Americans in the area of sports in Las Vegas. You see Ray, I grew up in the Bay Area where we have the Oakland Raiders, the 49ers, the Giants, and Oakland Athletics. When I moved to Vegas they had no professional sports. The only sports teams to follow in Vegas were the UNLV Runnin Rebels and boxing.

RM: So, you went to Vegas to become a teacher? But how did you become involved in boxing?

KB: Well, I went to many boxing events but it wasn’t until I went to the Muhammad Ali (versus Jerry Quarry) fight at the Las Vegas Convention Center in 1972. That’s what kind of intrigued me to say hey, I want to get more involved. So, I got involved in the amateur program as a judge. And, I continued to go to the Golden Gloves. And my brother Kermit was going to the Golden Gloves with me at the time. So basically what I would do is, I would judge the amateur fights, but when I went to the professional shows, I would score the professional shows and compare it to the professional judges to see how well I did.

RM: That’s smart.

KB: Then, one of the judges that I was comparing my notes with said, ‘You’re in pretty good shape, why don’t become a referee?’

RM: OK.

KB: My first response was no, but then I just gave it a try.

RM: Right.

KB: So, I started watching referees a little bit more when I went to the shows. Richard Steele happened to come to town from Southern California. I asked him to show me the art of refereeing. He took me down to one of the local amateur gyms and I started working out with him and some of the amateur fighters. And that’s how I got started.

RM: I see. So, what were some of things that you would look for in referees? What makes a good referee?

KB: Well, movement is one of the most important things. There has to be a lot of movement. Every once in a while you’ll see a referee get in the way of the fighters but they get out of the way quick because the movement is always consistent. You can’t stay in a particular spot. You can slow it down or speed it up but the referee is always moving. That’s one of the things I would focus on. And the next thing is verbal command. Referees have to verbally command what they expect a fighter to do, especially if there are any fouls during a course of a fight.

RM: I always notice your eyes in a fight. You make great eye contact. And you seem to talk with your eyes to the fighters. You always look the fighters directly in their eyes to make a point. Is that something you’ve trained on?

KB: Well, I am very explicit. And it’s amazing that you ask that question Ray because I like to express myself to the fighters. I want to let them know that this is the real deal. I want to let them know if I am giving them a soft warning or a hard warning. I don’t want the problem to continue to happen because it could be a situation where I start deducting points. And, there have been some photos taken of my eyes that look funny. I can laugh about it now, but when I look at the pictures, the look I am giving is very explicit. And I hope the fighters understand that I want to correct any problem and I don’t want it to continue.

RM: I hear you. So, how much different is it to watch a fight from the outside of the ring than it is from the inside?

KB: It’s a big difference. As a spectator you see things at certain angles. Your viewpoint depends on the movement of the fighters.

RM: Yeah.

KB: For referees, it’s often said that we have the best seat in the house because we can move to see what’s going on. We don’t sit in one place. We move to see. So, watching the fight inside the ring is completely different. The fans don’t get to move like we get to move.

RM: That’s true.

KB: So, it is important for me to get in the right position so I can make the right call. Our movement is the key factor. There might be a time or two where we might get out of position, that’s just being human, but 99% of time we’re right there seeing everything.

RM: So, if you’re not moving you’re not doing your job. Is that fair to say?

KB: Well, movement works to our favor. See, I’m a former track athlete. I used to run the 400. So, I take a lot of pride in my reaction and my ability to move around the ring because it helps me be in position at the right time and it plays to my advantage. And I always make note of that to the referees coming up, I work out just like the fighters work out.

RM: Really?

KB: Yes. I get on the treadmill and do leg presses to be the best at what I do in the ring. I want to be just as fit for what I do as the fighters are for what they do.

RM: Do you care personally about the fighters when you referee a fight?

KB: Oh, by all means. This is a combat sport and safety is my number one priority. And concussions are a big issue. At the seminar I recently went to in California we learned how to pick up signals for concussions and serious injury. The boxing fan is there to get entertained. And when we have to stop a fight before the fans are thrilled enough then the referee becomes the bad guy.

RM: The fans always want more action and the referee protects the fighters.

KB: Yes. And sometimes we stop a fight before reaching the crescendo that the fans want.

RM: What are some of the things you look for when a fighter is in trouble?

KB: Well, you look at body chemistry. When a fighter is sitting down on his punches before, he might be pushing his punches now. We also look at his eyes. The fighter’s eyes can become very glassy and it is hard for anyone else to see that if they are not in the ring. We as referees really get a chance to observe a fighter in between rounds. We have the option to get into his corner and ask a question or two, look at his body chemistry, also look at how he responds to us and to his trainer. We can also ask the fight doctor to take a look.

RM: What kind of questions do you ask the fighters in the corners?

KB: Well, sometimes before I get to the corner, the fight doctor is there before me asking questions and examining the fighter. And the doctor will step back and give me an assessment before the bell rings for the next round. The doctor will say something like ‘Hey, keep a close eye on this guy. He might be taking a little too much.’ Or he might just say ‘The fighter is OK.’ So, before that bell rings I already know what I am focused on.

RM: OK. Here is a question. How do you know when to stop a fight? Let’s say the fighter is in trouble and in the middle of the round and there is no way out, how do you know when to stop it?

KB: Well, if I get the opportunity between the round to talk to the fighter, if the fighter is just taking too many shots, I go to his corner and say ‘Look, I’m going to protect you. If you want to continue fighting, you’re going to have to show me something.’ So, if he comes out and takes more punishment, I am going to stop the fight. But if he comes out and shows some defense and boxing ability I will let it go. But we have to always stick to safety first.

RM: So, is there any fight that you worked in the past that still bothers you today? Is there any fight that you maybe stopped too soon or let it go too long?

KB: No. That has never gone through my mind. See, I have been involved in fights where fighters have passed. And you never want to be in a situation where you are questioning yourself.

RM: OK.

KB: And I would rather stop a fight sooner than later.

RM: I hear you.

KB: As a matter of fact, I have been involved in three fights* where a fighter has passed. And each circumstance was different. But I have no regret that I let it go too long because I stopped it when I felt the fighter had enough. Unfortunately there were other circumstances that were involved such as the cerebral hematoma and the fighter has passed.

RM: Yeah.

KB: But no. To answer your question, I have never gone back and thought that I should have stopped a fight sooner. It’s a trigger in us, Ray. If we see that he has had enough and that trigger goes off, you just don’t pull back from it.

RM: Yeah. Well, it is really unfortunate that you were involved in such traumatic fights. But it must have taken you a long time to perfect the instinct to stop a fight.

KB: Yes. What a lot of people don’t know is that I feel like the third man in the ring every time I watch a fight on television. I put myself in the situation. So, when certain things are happening when I watch a fight on TV, I officiate it from home. And nine times out of ten, if that referee is on his A game, we will almost come to the same conclusion at the same time.

RM: OK.

KB: We continually train ourselves. And I don’t just do it for boxing. When I watch a football game and see pass interference, I am trying to call it. I want to make sure I am sharp in what I see. Because in boxing, we don’t have the luxury of calling timeout and looking at a replay. In boxing, we have to call it how we say it.

RM: Yep.

KB: So, we have to train our eyes for what we see. Now, is it possibly for us to miss something here and there? Well, sure it is. We are only human. But I want to be 99% right. It’s just about training our eyes to what we see. So when we see it we call it.

RM: Right… Two big fights that stand out to me that you did recently are Mayweather/Mosley and Amir Khan/Danny Garcia. Can you tell me about round 2 of Mayweather/Mosley? What did you think when Mayweather got in trouble?

KB: Well, I’ll tell you, when Mosley caught Mayweather with a good shot, I think it was a right hand, he followed it up with a second right hand.

RM: Yeah.

KB: When I saw it that early in the fight I was like ‘Oh, boy.’ I was not expecting that. You know, I thought the action was going to pick up in the middle rounds. I was just thinking about their style of fighting. But when Mosley hurt Mayweather my first response was ‘Oh boy, it is picking up a lot sooner than what I thought.’ But then Mayweather took control of the fight from that point.

RM: So, you didn’t have any feelings about stopping the fight?

KB: No. The thought never even crossed my mind. Although Mayweather was hurt, he grabbed and held, but his eyes were still clear and he recovered very fast.

RM: OK. Then what about Khan/Garcia? Amir Khan said he was OK. But you still stopped it.

KB: That was a situation where the referee has to protect the fighter.

RM: Yeah.

KB: Amir Khan got up from the first knockdown in a bad situation. And like you said, I asked him if he was OK and if he can continue and he said yes. And, it was towards the end of the round so I was giving him the opportunity to finish the round. So, now he gets a minute rest. But then he goes back out and goes down again. I give him another opportunity. And then he goes down again. So, then after the third knockdown I was just looking at his movement and he just didn’t have it. He just didn’t. He could have went down maybe four or five more times but there was just no point in letting it go. The punches were accumulating. So for his safety I just stopped the fight.

RM: OK. I respect your opinion. And I think you did the right thing.

KB: Thank you.

RM: Hey, what did you think of Tony Weeks’ decision to stop the Canelo/Angulo fight?

KB: “I agree with Tony’s decision to stop the fight. I think it was a good decision. Safety is always the first and most important concern. Angulo was taking a lot of shots. And sometimes we have to protect the fighters from themselves. I went to a referee seminar about six weeks ago with Jack Reiss and Big John McCarthy and we were discussing how fighters get concussions while they are still fighting. Most people don’t realize that fighters can also get concussions standing up. No matter what, most of the fighters are going to fight through it because they have heart. But that is part of the reason why we have doctors in each corner. So, to answer your question, I do agree with Tony’s decision to stop the fight.

RM: What is your favorite type of fight to watch?

KB: Well, I tell people that boxers are entertaining us. They are showing how well their skills match up against their opponent. I don’t like to get into who my favorite fighter is. I don’t root for one side or another because of my position. I don’t have a favorite fighter or a favorite type of fight. I just want both fighters to enter the ring and exit the ring under their own power.

RM: What is the best fight you’ve refereed?

KB: Shucks, there’s been a lot Ray. The third Barrera and Morales was a good one.

RM: Oh, that was a good one.

KB: It was a war of a fight. I did Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito.

RM: Oh, you did the first one?

KB: I did the first one. It was a war. Mayweather/De la Hoya was a good highly competitive fight. That’s what people want. When Pacquiao fought Morales. When Pacquiao fought Cotto. When Pacquiao fought Marquez, I did the second fight and the fourth fight. And both of those fights were incredible. In the fourth fight, Marquez knocked Pacquiao down in the third round and Pacquiao knocked Marquez down in the fifth round.

RM: Right.

KB: At the end of the fifth round it was one of the scenarios that I explained to you earlier. I go over to Marquez’s corner and the fight doctor is looking at Marquez because it appeared he had a broken nose and he was bleeding out of both nostrils. He had a really good working out from Pacquiao. So, I am waiting to see what the doctor says and he tells me to let the fight continue. Then the next round, Marquez knocks Pacquiao out cold.

RM: Yep. That’s crazy.

KB: That was a good fight. So, I have been in my share. I can tell you that.

RM: You just reminded me of the Floyd Mayweather/Victor Ortiz fight. When Joe Cortez looked away from the action for a second and Mayweather clocked Ortiz. Can you give me your opinion on that?

KB: Yep. We talk about that fight at the referee seminars. There was not really much that Joe Cortez can do. You know, before the start of each fight we tell the fighters to protect yourself at all times. And when Ortiz intentionally head-butted Mayweather, Joe Cortez stopped it. Then Ortiz apologized immediately. And then Joe was putting Mayweather in the neutral corner and Victor Ortiz went over and apologized to him a third time. So, after Joe put Ortiz in the neutral corner and deducted a point he apologized a fourth time. Well, how many more times are you going to apologize? Then when the action began, and Mayweather understanding the rules that you have to protect yourself at all times said hey, if you don’t protect yourself, here we go. Again, there was not a lot Joe could do in that situation. Yeah, it is sad the fight ended that way but there was nothing Joe could do about it.

RM: Well, I appreciate your time Kenny. Is there anything else you would like to get off your chest?

KB: Well, the boxing judges take a pretty hard hit when they score a fight. The sports announcers make comments about how there could possibly be a fix. Personally I don’t think they should be hard on the judges because anybody can have a bad day at the office. When people say the fight is fixed it taints the sport. People start making accusations that officials are paid under the table and it’s very far from the truth.

RM: Thanks for letting me know. It is refreshing to hear that from an official.

KB: Well Ray, we officials love our sport. We do everything we can to be fair for our sport. Taking money under the table is outrageous as far as I’m concerned. I want the fans to know that we are not on the take. You know, I am a big 49ers fan and I didn’t like some of the calls that went against the 49ers in the NFC Championship game. Like I said, I have made mistakes before. It does not mean I am on the take. I just made a mistake just like any human being can make.

*=1st fight — 9/26/1997 James Crayton vs. Johnny Montantes at Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas, NV: The Minnesotan Montantes passed away two days later. He was 28 years old. His record was 28-4 with 22 KOs.

2nd fight — 06/22/2002 Fernando Montiel vs. Pedro Alcazar at MGM Grand in Las Vegas for the WBO super flyweight title: The Panamanian Alcazar passed away two days later. He was 26 years old. His record was 25-1 with 14 KOs.

3rd fight — 07/01/2005 Martin Sanchez vs. Rustam Nugaev at Orleans Hotel, Las Vegas, NV: The Mexican Sanchez passed away the following day. He was 26 years old. His record was 13-8 with 10 KOs.

You can email Ray at Raymond.Markarian@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter here @raymarkarian

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Raymond Markarian

The Hauser Report: Some Thoughts on Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul

Published

6 hours ago

November 17, 2024

Thomas Hauser

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Jake Paul boxed his way to a unanimous decision over Mike Tyson at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Friday night. The bout, streamed live on Netflix, was one of the most-watched fights of all time and, in terms of the level of competition, boxing’s least-consequential mega-fight ever.

We’re living in a golden age for spectator sports. Sports generate massive amounts of money from engaged fan bases and are more popular now than ever before. Today’s athletes are more physically gifted, better conditioned, and more skilled than their predecessors. Their prowess is appreciated and understood by tens of millions of fans.

Not so for boxing. For the sweet science, this is an era of “fools’ gold.” Yes, fighters like Oleksandr Usyk, Canelo Alvarez, Terence Crawford, and Naoya Inoue bring honor to the sport. But boxing’s fan base has dwindled to the point where most people have no idea who the heavyweight champion of the world is. The sport’s dominant promoter has a business model that runs hundreds of millions of dollars a year in the red. And most fights of note are contested behind a paywall that shrinks the fan base even more. Few sports fans understand what good boxing is.

Mike Tyson is 58 years old. Once upon a time, he was the most destructive boxer in the world and “the baddest man on the planet.” Prior to last Friday night, he hadn’t fought in nineteen years and hadn’t won a fight since 2003.

Jake Paul is a 27-year-old social media personality who wasn’t born when Tyson lost his aura of invincibility at the hands of Buster Douglas. Paul began boxing professionally three years ago and, before fighting Tyson, had compiled a 10-1 (7 KOs) record against carefully chosen opponents.

Netflix has roughly 283 million subscribers globally, 84 million of them in North America. Recently, it made the decision to move into live sports. On December 25, it will stream the National Football League’s two Christmas games on an exclusive basis.

Netflix took note of the fact that Tyson’s 2020 exhibition against Roy Jones drew 1.6 million pay-per-view buys and concluded that Tyson-Paul had the potential to be the most-viewed fight of all time. It purchased rights to the fight as an attention grabber and subscription seller for (a best-estimate) $40 million.

Tyson-Paul was originally scheduled for July 20. A compliant Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations sanctioned the bout as an official fight, not an exhibition. In deference to Tyson’s age, the fighters agreed that the match would be contested over eight two-minute rounds (women’s rules) with 14-ounce gloves (heavyweight gloves normally weigh ten ounces).

But on May 26, Tyson became nauseous and dizzy while on a flight from Miami to Los Angeles and needed medical assistance for what was later described as a bleeding ulcer. The fight was rescheduled for November 15. Later, Tyson described the incident on the plane as follows: “I was in the bathroom throwing up blood. I had, like, eight blood transfusions. The doctor said I lost half my blood. I almost died. I lost 25 pounds in eleven days. Couldn’t eat. Only liquids. Every time I went to the bathroom, it smelled like tar. Didn’t even smell like shit anymore. It was disgusting.”

Does that sound like a 58-year-old man who should be fighting?

As Eliot Worsell noted, Tyson-Paul contained all the elements of a successful reality show. “There are for a start,” he wrote, “celebrities involved, two of them. One is ‘old famous’ and the other ‘new famous’ and both bring large audiences with them. They need only tap something on their phone to guarantee the entire world pays attention. And that, in this day and age, is all you really need to green light a project like this.”

But Worsell added a word of caution, observing, “This has been the story of Jake Paul’s pro boxing career to date; one of smoke and mirrors, one of sycophants telling him only what he wants to hear. He has been fed a lie just as Mike Tyson is now being fed a lie, and on November 15 they will both play dress-up and be watched by millions. They will wear gloves like boxers and they will move like boxers – one hampered in this quest by old age and the other by sheer incompetence – and they will together make ungodly sums of money.”

There was early talk that 90,000 fans would jam AT&T Stadium on fight night. Initially, ticket prices ranged from $381 to $7,956. And those prices were dwarfed by four tiers of VIP packages topped by a two-million-dollar “MVP Owner’s Experience” that included special ringside seating at the fight for six people, luxury hotel accommodations, weigh-in and locker room photo ops, boxing gloves signed by Tyson and Paul, and other amenities.

But by Monday of fight week, ticket prices had dropped to as little as $36. Ringside seats were available for $900. And the press release announcing the eventual MVP Owner’s Experience sale backtracked a bit, saying the package was “valued at $2 million” – not that the actual sale price was $2 million. It also appeared that the purchase price included advertising for the law firm that purchased the package since the release proclaimed, “Just as every fighter in the ring stands to represent resilience, grit, and the pursuit of victory, TorkLaw stands in the corner of the people, fighting for justice and empowering those who need it most.”

That said, the fight drew 72,300 fans (inclusive of giveaway tickets) to AT&T Stadium. And the live gate surpassed $18 million making it the largest onsite gate ever in the United States for a fight card outside of Las Vegas. More than 60 million households watched the event live around the world.

The undercard featured a spirited fight between Mario Barrios and Abel Ramos that ended in a draw. Then came the second dramatic showdown between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano.

Taylor-Serrano II was for all four major sanctioning body 140-pound belts. Two years ago, Katie and Amanda did battle at Madison Square Garden on a historic night that saw Taylor emerge with a controversial split-decision win. Katie is now 38 years old and her age is showing. Amanda is 36. Taylor was an early 6-to-5 betting favorite in the rematch but the odds flipped late in Serrano’s favor.

Amanda began Taylor-Serrano II in dominating fashion and wobbled Katie just before the bell ending round one. That set the pattern for the early rounds. Serrano looked like she could hurt Taylor, and Taylor didn’t look like she could hurt Serrano.

Then in round four, Serrano got hurt. A headbutt opened a gruesome gash on her right eyelid. As the bout progressed, the cut became more dangerous. From an armchair perspective, it looked as though the fight should have been stopped and the result determined by the judges’ abbreviated scorecards. But the ring doctor who examined Serrano allowed it to continue even though the flow of blood seemed to handicap Amanda more and more with each passing round.

In round eight, referee Jon Schorle took a point away from Taylor after the fourth clash of heads that he thought Katie had initiated. By then, Serrano’s face resembled a gory Halloween mask and the bout had turned into a non-stop firefight. Each woman pushed herself as far as it seemed possible to go.

In the eyes of most observers, Serrano clearly won the fight. This writer scored the bout 96-93 in Amanda’s favor. Then the judges had their say. Each one favored Taylor by a 95-94 margin.

“My God!” blow-by-blow commentator Mauro Ranallo exclaimed after the verdict was announced. “How does one rob Amanda Serrano after a performance like that?”

In keeping with the hyperbole of the promotion, one might say that it was the most-watched ring robbery (although not the worst) in boxing history.

CompuBox is an inexact tabulation. But there’s a point at which the numbers can’t be ignored. According to CompuBox, Serrano outlanded Taylor in nine of ten rounds with an overall 324-to-217 advantage in punches landed.

From a boxing standpoint, Taylor-Serrano II made the evening special. Casual fans who don’t know much about the sweet science saw a very good fight. But they also saw how bad judging undermines boxing.

Meanwhile, as good as Taylor-Serrano II was, that’s not what Netflix was selling to the public. Jake Paul’s most recent events had engendered disappointing viewer numbers. This one was a cultural touchstone because of Tyson.

Paul has worked hard to become a boxer. In terms of skills, he’s now a club fighter (which is more than 99.9 percent of the population could realistically dream of being). So, what happens when a club fighter fights a 58-year-old man who used to be great?

Jack Johnson fought until the age of 53, losing four of his last six bouts. And the two he won were against opponents named Rough House Wilson (who was disqualified in what would be his only recorded professional fight) and Brad Simmons (who was barred from fighting again in Kansas because he was believed to have thrown the fight against Johnson).

Larry Holmes fought until age 52, knocking out 49-year-old Mike Weaver at age 51 and winning a unanimous decision over Eric Esch (aka Butterbean) in his final bout.

Paul was a 2-to-1 betting favorite. Serious PED testing for the fight was a murky issue but seems to have been minimal. Taylor and Serrano underwent VADA testing in advance of their bout. Tyson and Paul didn’t.

Tyson weighed in for the contest at 228.4 pounds; Paul at 227.2 (well over his previous high of 200). Following the weigh-in, Mike and Jake came face to face for the ritual staredown and Mike slapped Jake. But the incident was self-contained with no ripple effect and had the feel of a WWE confrontation.

That raised a question that was fogging the promotion: “Would Tyson vs. Paul be a ‘real’ fight or a pre-arranged sparring session (which was what Tyson vs. Roy Jones appeared to be)?”

That question was of particular note because sports betting is legal in 38 states and 31 of them were allowing wagers on the fight.

Nakisa Bidarian (co-founder of Paul’s promotional company) sought to lay that issue to rest, telling ESPN, “There’s no reason for us to create a federal fraud, a federal crime. These are pro fights that consumers are making legal bets on. We have never and we’ll never do anything that’s other than above board and one hundred percent a pro fight unless we come out clearly and say, ‘Hey, this is an exhibition fight that is a show.'”

Tyson looked old and worried during his ring walk and wore a sleeve on his right knee. The crowd was overwhelmingly in his favor. But it’s an often-repeated truism that the crowd can’t fight. And neither could Mike.

Once upon a time, Tyson scored nine first-minute knockouts in professional fights. Not first-round. First-minute.

Against Paul, “Iron Mike” came out for round one as hard as he could (which wasn’t very hard) while Jake kept a safe distance between them. Then Tyson tired and took all the air out of the fight. By round three, he was in survival mode with his head tucked safely behind his 14-ounce gloves. And Jake didn’t have the skills to hurt him.

The CompuBox numbers favored Paul by a 78-to-18 margin in punches landed. In other words, Tyson landed an average of two punches per round. The judges’ scores were 80-72, 79-73, 79-73 in Jake’s favor. It was a “real” fight but a bad one.

“I love Mike Tyson,” Terence Crawford posted on X afterward. “But they giving him too much credit. He looked like trash.”

Prior to the bout, Tris Dixon wrote, “Tyson-Paul is a weird event, and I can’t think of anything even remotely like it in terms of the level of fighters, celebrity, and their ages. The event is unique, and morally and ethically it is questionable. It is a cynical cash grab. I can’t see it being particularly entertaining as a high-level sporting event. But I’m sure once it starts you won’t be able to take your eyes off it.”

All true. But let’s remember that there was a time when Mike Tyson was universally recognized as the best fighter in the world. Not many people in history have been able to say that.

—

Thomas Hauser’s email address is thomashauserwriter@gmail.com. His most recent book – MY MOTHER and me – is a personal memoir available at www.amazon.com/My-Mother-Me-Thomas-Hauser/dp/1955836191/ref=sr_1_1?crid=5C0TEN4M9ZAH&keywords=thomas+hauser&qid=1707662513&sprefix=thomas+hauser%2Caps%2C80&sr=8-1

In 2004, the Boxing Writers Association of America honored Hauser with the Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence in boxing journalism. In 2019, Hauser was selected for boxing’s highest honor – induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

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Golden Boy in Riyadh Results: Zurdo Ramirez Unifies Cruiserweight Titles

Published

1 day ago

November 16, 2024

David A. Avila

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Mexico’s Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez endured the grinding style of England’s Chris Billam-Smith to become the unified WBO and WBA cruiserweight champion by unanimous decision after a bruising battle in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.

“I’m a true champion,” said Ramirez.

Ramirez (47-1, 30 KOs) used angles and experience to out-maneuver the very strong Billam-Smith (20-2, 13 KOs) in Golden Boy Promotion’s first joint adventure with “Riyadh Season” in Riyadh, Saud Arabia.

Footwork by Ramirez seemed to surprise Billiam-Smith whose relentless approach could not corral the Mexican fighter who was fighting only for the second time at cruiserweight.

The former super middleweight champion used his experience and ability to create punching angles to optimum success against Billam-Smith. The movement confused the British fighter who never could find a solution.

“He has consistent shots,” said Billam-Smith. “I had trouble tracking him.”

But Billam-Smith used his relentless attacking style for all 12 rounds despite suffering a cut near his eye in the sixth round. He never quit and pounded away at Ramirez who simply out-punched the incredibly strong British cruiserweight.

No knockdowns were scored. Billam-Smith did have success in the 10^th round but couldn’t overcome the overall success Ramirez had tallied with body shots and straight lefts throughout the contest.

“It meant a lot for me to try and stop him,” said Ramirez. “But he’s pretty tough.”

After 12 rounds of bruising action all three judges saw Ramirez the winner 116-112 twice and 116-113.

Barboza’s Quest

After 11 years Arnold Barboza (31-0, 11 KOs) finally got his wish and met former super lightweight champion Jose Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs) in the boxing ring and handed him only his second defeat.

“It was a long time coming,” Barboza said.

Barboza started slowly against the pressure style of Ramirez but soon gathered enough information to determine his own attack. Accuracy with jabs and body shots opened things up for the Southern California fighter from El Monte.

Ramirez seemed to lose that fire in his legs and usually attacking style. Though he occasionally showed the old fire it was only in spurts. Barboza took advantage of the lulls and pierced the former champion’s guards with accurate jabs and quick body shots.

He was sharp.

After 10 rounds all three judges favored Barboza 96-94 twice and 97-93.

“This was my championship fight,” said the undefeated Barboza. “I respect everything about him (Ramirez) and his team.” Ramirez’s only previous loss came in a bout with Josh Taylor for the undisputed world title at 140 pounds.

Lightweight clash

William Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) survived a knockdown to out-punch former champion Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs) and walk away with a split decision victory in their lightweight confrontation.

“I knew it was going to be a tough fight,” said Zepeda. “He surprised me a little bit.”

Zepeda opened up with his usual flood of punches from every angle and soon found himself looking up from the floor after Farmer floored him with a perfect counter-left in the third round.

It took the Mexican fighter a few rounds to find a way to avoid Farmer’s counter lefts and then the deluge of blows resumed. Though Farmer continued to battle he couldn’t match the number of blows coming from Zepeda.

After 10 rounds one judge saw Farmer 95-94 but the two other judges saw Zepeda by 95-94 scores.

“I just brought it to him,” said Farmer who knew it was a close fight.

Puerto Rico’s New Unified Champ

In a battle between minimumweight world titlists Puerto Rico’s Oscar Collazo (11-0, 8 KOs) knocked out Thailand’s KO CP Freshmart (25-1, 9 KOs) to become the WBO and WBA champion.

Freshmart, also known as Thammanoon Niyomtrong, was the longest reigning champion in the 105-division weight class for a total of eight years. That was quickly ended as Collazo’s floored the strong Thai fighter three times during their clash of champions.

Body shots proved beneficial to Collazo as both exchanged blows to the abdomen but the Puerto Rican added flashy combinations to control the fight for six rounds.

“I saw him breathing hard,” said Collazo.

Possibly understanding he was falling behind, Freshmart began to advance more aggressively and forced exchanges with the fast Boricua. Bad idea.

During a furious exchange in the sixth Collazo connected with a counter right hook on the chin and down went Freshmart. He recovered and finished the round.

Collazo opened the seventh searching for an opening and immediately connected with another right hook during an exchange of blows with the Thai fighter. Down went Freshmart again but he got up to fight again. Collazo moved in cautiously again and this time fired a left uppercut that finished Freshmart at 1:29 if the seventh round.

“We got the stoppage,” said Collazo the unified WBO and WBA minimumweight champion.

Puerto Rico has another unified world champion in Collazo.

“I want all the belts,” Collazo said.

Duarte edges Akhmedov

Mexico’s Oscar Duarte (28-2-1, 22 KOs) scrapped past Botirzhon Akhmedov (10-4, 9 KOs) in a rugged super lightweight battle to win by unanimous decision. But it was a close one.

“He’s a great fighter, a warrior,” said Duarte of Akhmedov.

Akhmedov started faster using angles and bursts of punches as Duarte looked to counter. In the second half of the 10-round fight the extra energy expended by the fighter from Uzbekistan seemed to tire him. Mexico’s Duarte took advantage and looked stronger in the second half of the match.

All three judges saw Duarte the winner 98-92, 97-93, 96-94.

Welterweights

Saudi Arabia’s Ziyad Almaayouf (6-0-1) and Mexico’s Juan Garcia (5-6-1) fought to a majority draw after six rounds of action.

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy

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Jake Paul Defeats Mike Tyson plus Other Results from Arlington, Texas

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2 days ago

November 16, 2024

David A. Avila

Hake-Paul-Defeats-Mike-Tyson-and-Other-Resulys-from-Arlington-Texas

The power of Mike Tyson.

Tyson’s power was on display in the people he attracted from all over the world to fill up the 72,000-seat Texas stadium and to capture the interest of more than 160 million viewers on Netflix. But, not in the prize ring on Saturday.

Youth and Jake Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) were the winners after eight tepid rounds over legendary heavyweight champion Tyson (50-7, 44 KOs) who failed to beat the chains of time. But he did stir them a bit at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Paul moved in and out of danger against Tyson the former undisputed heavyweight champion whose name struck terror in the 80s and 90s. Though the social media influencer had a 31-year younger body, he could not take full advantage.

“I was afraid he was going to hurt me,” admitted Paul.

In the opening round Tyson stalked Paul like a hungry lion about to pounce on a piece of meat. The younger fighter used his legs and smart jabs to keep separation. It was a wise decision.

At times Paul would unleash quick combinations, but the experienced Tyson’s muscle memory kicked in and he easily avoided the blows. But from the third round on the legs seemed to lock up and every movement seemed a struggle.

Paul landed left hooks to the head but Tyson managed to avoid their full power. And when Tyson connected with a left uppercut in the fifth round Paul wagged his tongue to acknowledge it connected, but the power was not damaging.

The eight two-minute rounds were perfect for this fight.

When a 58-year-old body is forced to fight for its life with all the necessary tools such as agility, endurance and quickness, the mind can play tricks. But Tyson was resolute and kept advancing against Paul in every round.

In the seventh round the aged heavyweight rekindled a second wind and fired dangerous combinations for the first time since the second frame. His winning spirit blazed for a moment or two until Paul unleashed his own combination blows. The moment for miracles had passed.

The final round saw Paul use more jabs and a few combination punches. Tyson tried to fire back but was unable to get his legs to cooperate. Still, his bravado was intact and Paul marked the last 10 seconds by bowing down humbly in front of Tyson. Paul had survived the lion’s maw.

“He’s the greatest heavyweight to ever do it,” said Paul of Tyson. “He’s a really tough and experienced fighter.”

Tyson was almost silent after the fight.

“I knew he was a good fighter. I came prepared,” said Tyson.

Katie Taylor Wins Again

In an even more brutal fight than their first encounter, undisputed super lightweight champion Katie Taylor (24-1) again edged out Amanda Serrano (47-3-1) after 10 bloody rounds to win by unanimous decision.

It was Serrano who jumped on Taylor in the first round and ravaged the Irish fighter with rifling lefts that snapped her head back. There was no wasting time to get acquainted.

Taylor got her footing in the third round with her quick-handed flurries. Though Serrano landed too it was Taylor’s resilience that kept her from being over run by the Puerto Rican’s power blows.

In the third round however, Taylor rushed in with blows and then grabbed Serrano and butted her with her head. A bloody gash opened up on the side of the Puerto Rican’s right eye. The referee quickly acknowledged it was a butt that caused the bad cut.

In the next round the cut opened up even more and the referee and ringside physician asked if she wanted to continue. She acknowledged to continue though the fight could have been stopped and judged by the scores accumulated up to that point. Serrano probably would have won.

Serrano did not want to stop.

“I chose to be great,” Serrano said. “I’m a Boricua. I’ll die in the ring.”

For the remainder of the fight the two combatants battled furiously. It was even more savage than their first encounter in New York two years ago. The referee repeatedly warned Taylor for intentionally diving in with her head and took one point away in the eighth round. He could have deducted more but did not.

“Sometimes it’s tough in there,” explained Taylor.

Serrano’s right hooks and left crosses found their mark repeatedly. Taylor’s quick combinations and strafing rights blazed often. It was up to the judges after 10 rounds had expired. All three judges saw it in favor of Taylor 95-94.

Many in the crowd booed. Even the announcers seemed surprised.

“She’s a fantastic champion,” said Taylor of Serrano. “She’s a hard puncher and tough.”

Serrano seemed displeased by the decision, but happy for the success of the fight card.

WBC Welterweight Title Fight

The theme for the WBC welterweight title fight was only sissies block and slip punches as Mario Barrios (29-2-1, 18 KOs) the champion and challenger Abel Ramos (28-6-3, 22 KOs) slugged each other gruesome for 12 bloody rounds and a split decision.

Barrios retains the WBC title.

“I knew it was a close fight,” Barrios said. “He made it a war.”

The two Mexican-American warriors blasted each other with knockdowns but somehow continued to battle on.

Texas-born Barrios was defending his title for the first time and Arizona’s Ramos was finally invited to challenge for a world title. He accepted.

Barrios opened up with sharp jabs and rocked Ramos with a straight right. He almost went down. In the second round he was not as lucky and was floored with a perfect three-punch combination. Ramos smiled and resumed the fight.

After a few more one-sided rounds in favor of Barrios, who trains in Las Vegas with Bob Santos, the match seemed to be dominated by the welterweight champion. It was a false read.

Ramos opened the sixth round in a more aggressive attack and began hammering Barrios with right hands. A three-punch combination blasted the champion to the ground and forced him to take an eight-count. He barely survived the round as the crowd panted.

“He can crack,” said Barrios.

For the remainder of the match both fought back and forth with Barrios finding success with jabs and rights to the body. Ramos rocketed rights on the champion’s head and occasional left hooks but the right seemed lasered to Barrios head.

Both of their faces were swollen and bloodied by punches to the face and neither seemed willing to quit. After 12 rounds one judge saw Ramos the winner 114-112, another saw Barrios win 116-110, and a third judge saw it 113-113 for a split draw. Barrios retains the WBC title.

“It was a great fight for the crowd,” said Ramos with a smile. “Two warriors like us are going to give an action-packed performance.”

Indian Fighter Wins

Neeraj Goyat (19-4-2) of India defeated Brazil’s Whindersson Nunes (0-1) in a super middleweight fight after six rounds. No knockdowns were scored but Goyat was the busier and more skilled fighter.

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