Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
Here is the indisputable fact of the Amir Khan/Marco Antonio Barrera travesty that took place in Manchester this past Saturday night -- Barrera was robbed. The whole thing was an absolute joke and the referee and doctor on the scene should be ashamed of themselves, as should Khan and his handlers for carrying on as if this was a remarkable victory instead of a complete miscarriage of justice.
(If you didn’t see the fight, here it is in its entirety, in HDizzle no less.)
If you’re disinclined to watch that whole vid right now, let me just explain to you all that you need to know about this fight. In the first round, a colossal and completely accidental clashing of heads opened a cut on Barrera’s forehead around his hairline. It was a long and deep gash that sent sheets of blood pouring down into Barrera’s left eye, so bad that I say without reservation that it was at least one of the five worst cuts I’ve ever seen a fighter endure in all my years of watching fights.
Given the severity of the wound, here is what should have happened: The referee should have immediately interrupted the action and had the cut inspected by the ringside doctor, at which point the doctor either would have stopped the fight right then and there, or given Barrera, at his volition, one more round to see if his corner could stop the massive bleeding that was so dramatically impairing his vision. Because the cut was much too bad to be stopped his corner, the fight then unquestionably would have been stopped during the second round when it became clear that the flow of blood was going to continue unabated and make fighting impossible for Barrera. In that the cut was caused by an accidental clash of heads, the bout would have been ruled a no-contest. Which would have been a massive drag, but it happens in there, and it’s the only fair thing to do, because no one deserves to lose a fight that way.
So, that’s the way it should have gone. Here’s the way it did go: The referee didn’t refer Barrera to the ringside doctor until the fourth round despite that he fought the rest of the first and the ensuing three rounds with a face full of blood that blinded his left eye and made him all but helpless to Khan’s right hand. As far as I could see, the ringside doctor didn’t even venture over to Barrera’s corner to inspect the cut during that entire time. It was if nothing had happened.
When the doctor did look at the cut in the middle of the fourth, he let the fight keep going before finally stopping it in the fifth round. The reason for that delay couldn’t be more obvious, and calculated, and crooked. Once it goes into the fifth round, any fight stopped by a cut resulting from an accidental head-butt goes to the scorecards for a decision, whereas short of five rounds, it is ruled a no contest. You see where this is going, I imagine. After the cut happened, and the blood made a mask of his face, Barrera was highly vulnerable in there. He fought nobly, as is his way, but he was a one-eyed fighter in retreat. Khan, who admittedly has great speed and accuracy, had an absolute field day picking apart the wounded Mexican.
And with the fight stopped in the fifth, the scorecards predictably read a unanimous rout for Khan, who celebrated as if he had actually won something and not been the beneficiary of a blatant bit of home-cooking. While Khan beat his chest, Barrera paced the ring flabbergasted at what had just transpired. “I was cut very badly,” he said with disgust in his post-fight interview. “They should have stopped the fight in the first round.”
Let’s cut back two Saturday’s ago for a moment here and revisit the Robert Guerrero/Daud Yordan fight on HBO’s Boxing After Dark card in San Jose. Guerrero was badly cut above his right eye in the second round. The ref did the right thing, immediately halting the action and directing Guerrero to the ringside doctor, who stopped the fight then and there, seemingly at Guerrero’s urging. Guerrero has since taken a lot of flak for that behavior, because he was fighting on a big-time HBO card in front of his hometown fans and boxing is a sport where quitting is never looked upon fondly in any circumstances.
Given what became of Barrera over in Manchester, however, Guerrero’s decision looks pretty sound in retrospect. Boxing is a violent game of human speed chess where moves and counter-moves are made in a matter of milliseconds. It’s a hard enough game to play with both eyes open wide. If one of them gets closed by forces beyond your control, why risk suffering a loss, and a beating, that you simply don’t deserve?
The thing is, Barrera is the genuine embodiment of The Mexican Warrior, not to mention the fact that he’s a living legend and future Hall-of-Famer. He would never pull out of a fight like Guerrero did or ask a doctor to stop a fight, not in a million years, not even if it were clearly in his best interest to do so. That’s the referee’s and the doctor’s job, to protect a fighter both in the interests of his health and the general fairness and integrity of the sport.
In this case, with a packed house of rabid Manchurians present and much at stake for Khan’s future, integrity was thrown out the window, and with it the career of one of the greatest fighters of this generation. I don’t understand why more outrage isn’t being expressed by the boxing community about the situation at the moment, why everyone seems so willing to sign on to the presiding interpretation of what happened Saturday night -- that Khan destroyed a past-his-prime Barrera and looked great in doing so.
As for Khan looking great, let me say that I guarantee you two things: 1) If Khan had suffered that cut and the fight had been allowed to continue, Barrera would have looked equally dominant in destroying Khan, and 2) If Khan had suffered that cut, we never would have seen Barrera’s dominance, because the fight would have been stopped in either the first or second round like it should have been.
In conclusion, do I think Khan would have beaten Barrera on a level playing field? I honestly don’t know. Based on what I saw in the 90 seconds or so before Barrera was cut, I think it was going to be a very good fight, with Khan moving backwards and sharp-shooting his laser combos while Barrera stalked and looked for that one perfect counter that would prove the equalizer.
Now, though, we’ll never find out, as the press on both sides of the Atlantic bizarrely sees fit to hail Khan for an impressive and redemptive victory over a faded legend. Only Khan himself has the power to set the whole thing straight right now, and if he had any guts, he would drop his “I proved my point” sham routine, admit that he was the victor of a highly dubious contest and the only just thing to do about it is give Barrera a rematch.
Will he do that? Of course not, and to that I say shame on him, and shame on them all.
This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.
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Thats a good article. I was also reading something on another website that had similar problems but it gets worse. I ddin’t know til yesterday, but that kid Fagan, who fought Khan last time out actually BROKE HIS LEG. Crazy thing was that he got back up to fight, so he was an Irish warrior for real, but nobody knew at the time. However, his corner knew there was something wrong and threw in the towel, b/c they said Fagan doesn’t go down. This is the piece I read yesterday- it all makes sense now:
Barry
From Jared Brasjer: on the boxrec.com site:
You know, I really thought Khan answered alot of critics last night, but Sky Sports really hype him up too much. I really think Khan can be a world champ, so my argument is NOT with how talented he is, but the last 2 fighters that Khans had to fight, were terribly badly injured.
Fagan broke his leg (and still got up to fight)- I only read about that this morning. I was wondering why a fighter as tough as Fagan was touted- split decisions with Spadafora and split with Kimbrough and gone the distance with everyone, including Chavez Jr went down so easy- read his story here-
http://irish-boxing.com/stories/march09/march09_fagan_on_injury.html but there was NOT ONE WORD about that last night when they were showing replays of Khan beating him. It makes a mockery out of Sky’s comentators and their credibility, and shows that they will back Khan, as if their lives depended on it- even if the facts get in the way.
Then last night (sat night), even though, as I said Khan was very, very good, they tried to downplay the kind of affect that a cut can have on a fighter. Barrera’s head was split WIDE open and was clearly running into his eye, blinding him of course, but all the talk was how Khan demolished MAB. I understand that Khan means BIG MONEY to SKY and money talks but the commentators and analysists should get some balls and tell it they way it is.
I think that Khan’s movement was really good and he is lightning quick, but these 2 examples (Fagan and Barrera) just mean that Khan was just lucky to be handed the cards he was dealt, on these given nights. He’s still not been tested by a fighter who has not been badly injured. That can’t go on for the rest of his career, so we’ll soon see when he’s in there with someone who can defend themselves properly without having the (very real) excuse of being injured for the whole fight.
by Barry Powers on Mar 16, 2009 7:37 PM EDT reply actions
Good article, I don’t understand it either.
Regarding Barry Powers’ comment, though, Fagan broke his ankle after being knocked down so badly that he spun right round and hence broke his leg on landing. He’d have been KO’d quickly even without the injury.
I think Khan looked dramatically improved as a result of Roach’s influence, but you’re right, we’ll never know for certain whether Khan could have kept Barrera at bay for 12 rounds. Khan ought to offer Barrera a rematch.
by Dave Rado on Mar 16, 2009 9:59 PM EDT reply actions
Right so Large, it was a disgrace (not saying stupid stuff doesn’t happen elsewere, look up: Segura-Canchilla II).
I was not impressed at all by Khan. Sure he has fast hands, but I didn’t see MAB really hurt and man Khans legs wobbled everytime MAB hit him. If they wouldn’t have stopped in the 5th MAB would have a punchers chance till the end.
by Tricksteriuos on Mar 17, 2009 4:54 AM EDT reply actions
…And Brits wonder why UK Boxing dosen’t get enough respect? Say what you want about the officiating & State Commissions in the US, but that fight anywhere on Yank soil is stopped in Round 1. Even in Vegas!
by she hate me on Mar 17, 2009 1:04 PM EDT reply actions
Trickster – you heard MAB in the post-fight interview, right? He said he barely even felt Khan’s punches. I had the same impression. I think it was going to be a good fight, but like you I had a feeling that eventually MAB was going to get off with a shot that made it very interesting. She Hate Me, no doubt, it gets stopped anywhere in the States. Vegas, of course, the Vegas commission is actually pretty good about that stuff. It was just ridiculous, the whole thing. I still can’t quite get over the fact that the doctor didn’t even LOOK at the cut until the 4th round. What the hell was he waiting for? I think he and the ref must have had the idea that if he looked at it he was going to have to stop it so they should put that off as long as possible. It was just insane.
by No Mas Large.tsn on Mar 17, 2009 1:50 PM EDT reply actions
No Mas, Agreed. I’ve seen some pretty kooky stuff happen in (& out of) the Ring in Vegas, but, when it comes to Fighter safety…No quibble here.
Watching Rounds 2-4 was extremely awkward & painful to endure. The fight was obviously "over," except that the only 2 people on the Planet who didn’t know it were "Ref" & "Doctor." Beyond irresponsible.
by she hate me on Mar 17, 2009 2:03 PM EDT reply actions
This is rare, since usually agree with Large on most things, but I have to disagree here. First, I am a huge MAB fan. He earned a lifetime pass with the beatdown of the Prince, I thought he won all three Morales fights, and I was pulling for him in this fight. That being said I don’t think he was robbed that night.
Ideally, the ref should have looked at it when it happened and the doctor should have examined him in the corner. But the cut was not in a place that traditionally stops fights and the extent of the damage wasn’t immediately evident. When the doctor did consult with the ref, MAB evidently said he could continue. I get that he’s the ultimate Aztec warrior in there, but if he’s going to have that mentality then he has to accept the possible consequences. With a cut, if the fighter says he’s okay and he’s not yet taking a beating the ref/doctor has little reason to stop it, particularly when a great champ like MAB is saying it. It then becomes incumbent on the corner to alert the doctor that they think the cut is bad or that their fighter is incapacitated. I think I heard that MAB’s brother was cornering him that night, he surely should have been looking out for him.
Frankly, I don’t think that the ref and a ring doctor were smart or quick enough on their feet to devise a plan wherein they would agree (wordlessly? did they meet beforehand?) to not stop the fight until after the fourth round on a cut they couldn’t have known was going to happen. Incompetent, sure, but not crooked. Just an unlucky night for MAB brought about, in part, by his own stubbornness.
Btw, did anyone else feel like Khan got a serious smattering of boos during the intros?
by bumgilseo on Mar 18, 2009 12:12 PM EDT reply actions
Bum – come on man! The cut took 30 stitches! The dude was clearly blind out of one eye the entire fight. It was a TERRIBLE cut – you watch fights, you know that. And they didn’t even take a look at it until the fourth round. Whether they were in collusion or not is one thing, but the ref clearly decided to ignore a ridiculously bad cut for the better part of four rounds, and so did the doctor (unless I missed a trip to the corner by the doc earlier than that, but they showed all the between rounds on Sky and I didn’t see it). I don’t know exactly what was said either, but it didn’t look to me like Barrera was saying, please please don’t stop this fight when they halted the action in the 4th. It looked to me like he was hoping that they would call a stop to it. He was clearly indicating to him that he was having a lot of trouble seeing. It looked to me like he was saying, "according to my code, i will fight on, but it is very difficult to me."In conclusion, I still feel certain that if that fight was in the States, it would have been stopped in the second round. They would have looked at it in the first, given the corner one shot at stopping the bleeding, and then in the second when it was still flowing like wine, they would have waved it off. It was a textbook situation. One last thing – leaving aside for a second the question of who should ahve stopped it, don’t you agree that it should have been stopped, that the result is tainted? And that it’s preposterous how much ink is being devoted to the idea that Khan destroyed a useless and old Barrera?
by No Mas Large.tsn on Mar 18, 2009 12:51 PM EDT reply actions
KHAAAAAANNNNNN!!!!!
by ChiAdam on Mar 18, 2009 2:30 PM EDT reply actions
I agree with No Mas’s post.
Khan was only tested for less than a round – after that he was fighting with a massive advantage. Anyone can look good for less than a round – that says nothing about how it would have gone in a fair fight over 12 rounds. Frazier barely landed a punch for 4 rounds in the first fight against Frazier, but started to catch up with him in round 5 and after that it became a war of attrition. Even with the cut Barrera managed to land a few good punches on Khan; and Khan’s stamina under pressure has never been tested over 12 rounds. The way Khan’s camp and some of the media are spinning this as a great victory is appalling. It was a good performance, and he showed a lot of improvement on previous fights, but it was not a great victory, and Barrera deserves a rematch.
by Dave Rado on Mar 18, 2009 5:12 PM EDT reply actions
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