An old adage reminds us that ?history has a way of repeating itself.? Just three years ago, Azumah Nelson was denied the 40th victory of his career in his rubber match against Jeff Fenech. Before that, Ike Quartey was on the losing end of what many deemed to be controversial decision to both Oscar De La Hoya and the late Vernon Forrest. Such seems to be the case for Ghanaian bantamweight Joseph ?King Kong? Agbeko. This past summer, Agbeko found himself on the losing end of an excellent contest against Abner Mares. The bout with Mares was the finals of Showtime?s bantamweight tournament that also saw Vic Darchinyan and Yonnhy Perez face off.
As for Agbeko, unlike his fellow compatriots (whom he remains good friends with), who were only fighting their in-the-ring rivals, Agbeko found himself facing two combatants in the squared circle the night of August 13.
?This injustice has tarnished the entire tournament,? Agbeko would shout. ?The officiating was absolutely horrible. Come December 3rd, I will prove to be the best in the rematch.?
The official Agbeko is referring to is Russell Mora. Exactly how bad was Mora? Well, all that has to be mentioned is that Showtime?s fight panel of Gus Johnson, Al Bernstein, Antonio Tarver and ring analyst Jim Gray put Mora on blast. Bernstein had alluded that it had been the worst case of officiating he has witnessed in his 30-plus years of covering the game.
