The late Arthur Mercante Sr. was a great referee; make that an All-Time great referee. Sadly, this weekend was proof that son is definitely not like father.
What a crazy, injury filled weekend of boxing!
Before I get into one of the most miserable, egotistical displays of refereeing I have ever seen, I would first like to mention the absolutely unlucky performance of World Title contender Troy Ross of Brampton, Ontario. In my thirty plus years in the sport, I can’t remember a crazier, or for that matter, faster, unfortunate turn of events.
I was with Ross last week in Paris, France where he and trainer Chris Amos were finishing off their final preparation for Ross’ IBF World Cruiserweight Title fight against former world champion Steve Cunningham. Both Ross and Amos were confident in their chances, and many were expecting Ross to return with the World Title, myself included.
Saturday in Neubrandenburg, Germany, Ross dominated Cunningham for four rounds as well as dropping him in the fourth with a beautifully placed left hand to the chin. After regaining his feet, Cunningham threw a straight right hand in an attempt to hold off the pressure from Ross. In one of the “freakiest” occurrences I have ever seen, the thumb of Cunningham caught Ross directly on his left eye, what followed was incredible. After the punch landed, Ross, in extreme pain turned around clutching his eye. When the referee looked at the damage, he immediately summoned the doctor to have a look. What the doctor saw was the bottom eyelid ripped at the eyeball. With no other option, he immediately ordered the referee to wave the fight off. (Photo Courtsey of John Horneware)
Under the circumstances of one of the most bizarre cuts I have ever seen, Troy Ross’ World Title hopes came to an abrupt end.
Let’s hope, that due to the fact that the injury was caused due to a thumb in the eye, unintentional or not, that the IBF will order a rematch in order to determine who is the best cruiserweight in the world. Troy Ross deserves that chance!
While we are on the subject of bizarre injuries; how about the display of courage by Yuri Foreman in defence of his WBA Light-middleweight title against Miguel Cotto?
In a long and storied history, boxing returned to Yankee Stadium as Miguel Cotto was in pursuit of another world title. WBA Light-Middleweight Champion Yuri Foreman, studying to be a rabbi, was in the first defence of the title he had won from Daniel Santos. With an electric atmosphere both fighters showed their talent under the lights at the great ball park.
While the fight was certainly competitive early, it was evident that the fire-power and pressure from Miguel Cotto was beginning to show. Never backing down however, Foreman tried everything to hold on to his title. What he didn’t expect was that his right knee would give way for no apparent reason, not once but twice.
With Foreman hobbling badly, in obvious pain, and with Cotto knowing his prey was seriously handicapped, Foreman’s trainer Joe Grier climbed the ring steps and threw the towel into the ring in protection of his fighter. While this was certainly not the ending the Yankee Stadium faithful were looking for, there really wasn’t any alternative.
Foreman knee was badly injured, he was unable to move, in excruciating pain he battled on with great courage trying all he could to hold off the ever charging Cotto.
It should have been over then and there. Incredibly, and to the amazement of everyone watching, referee Arthur Mercante Jr. would have no part of it. Refusing to accept the surrender from Foreman’s corner, and with the ring beginning to fill with members from both camps, Mercante began ordering everyone out of the ring. In his eyes the fight was not over.
“The towel came in the heat of the battle,” Mercante said. “They had a good exchange going. I felt it wasn’t necessary to stop it. I didn’t know where it came from. There was no need to stop the fight. They were in the middle of a great fight. That’s what the fans came to see. I felt I did the right thing to let it continue.
“I called time, they had an extra minute to rest. It gave them both time to rest. I went over to Yuri and told him to suck it up. He showed the true heart of champion.”
There you have it, regardless of the courage showed by Foreman, despite the pain of his badly injured knee and with complete disregard for the protection offered by the Foreman corner, Arthur Mercante Jr., seemingly oblivious to the knee injury suffered by Foreman and believing that “there was no need to stop the fight” , told Foreman to “suck it up” and be subjected to even more punishment.
“Suck it up”!!! What was Mercante thinking? Was it not obvious enough how hurt Foreman was? Was he waiting for Cotto to completely annihilate Foreman perhaps with a career ending knockout? What purpose was served by allowing Foreman to be subjected to another half round of punishment against a debilitating puncher like Cotto?
Let’s take a quick look at some of the Mercante fights of the past. These can easily be found on YouTube. Mercante was the third man in the ring when Pernell Whitaker was allowed to pound Diosbelys Hurtado mercilessly as Hurtado was virtually unconscious and laying on the ropes. Mercante was also the referee when Charles Murray pounded Reggie Green, and more seriously, Mercante refereed the fight in which Beethaeven Scotland was killed after absorbing far too much punishment under the watchful eye of Mercante.
I would like to be clear about one thing, I have always held firm on the notion that regardless of the actions of a referee, the corner is empowered to stop the fight at any time. Unlike most, I rarely criticize a referee for NOT stopping a fight. I have always firmly believed that it is unfair to blame a referee for something that a corner can and should do.
In this case however, the corner, as they are supposed to do, came to the rescue of their young fighter. They accepted their role and carried out their responsibilities admirably. Arthur Mercante robbed them of that responsibility and took matters into to his own hands. By doing so he exposed a young, courageous fighter like Yuri Foreman to grave danger.
Usually a fighter needs the protection OF the referee from the onslaught of an opponent. On Saturday night, Yuri Foreman needed protection FROM a referee who was more interested in his own position of authority than in the safety and welfare of an injured fighter.
