News broke Wednesday the all three of the judges for last weekend’s bout between Paul ‘The Punisher’ Williams and Erislandy Lara at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic city have been suspended indefinitely by the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board.
Judges Donald Givens, Hilton Whitaker Jr. and Al Bennett awarded Williams a majority decision win with scores of 116-114, 115-114 and 114-114 while the vast majority of those watching scored the fight for Lara, and in most cases by more than a few rounds.
All three were deemed to have deviated so far wide of the mark in fact that according to a statement released to the press by NJSACB chairman Aaron M. Davis the three will undergo re-training before officiating again:
“Any contestant who enters a ring or cage in our state deserves the best officiating that we can provide. While we do not mean to diminish Mr. Williams’ competitive spirit and exciting style, we feel that we did not provide our best officiating on July 9.”
“This agency has placed all three judges on indefinite suspension. Further, all three judges will be required to undergo additional training prior to their return to professional boxing judging.
It could be argued that the scoring debacle isn’t necessarily entirely the fault of the judges alone due to the fact that all three were inexperienced and perhaps shouldn’t have been assigned to work a HBO main event fight in the first place.
All of which serves to underline the fact that a rematch between Lara and Williams is the only real way for either man to prove that the decision should have gone his way.
Coming into the fight Williams was returning from a brutal knockout loss, a lengthy layoff from training and perhaps had one eye on Sergio Martinez.
Under those circumstances he could no doubt argue that he wasn’t at his best against Lara the first time around.
Lara, a Cuban with an outstanding amateur record, was a one time prospect deemed to have fizzled out somewhat after a draw the first time he took a big step up in competition against Carlos Molina in his last outing.
A second fight would give Williams a chance to prove that he is a step above the likes of Lara as he claims.
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Lara would set out to prove that he deserved the decision the first time around, and that he is capable of competing at the very highest levels.
Currently the only one screaming for a rematch are Lara and his Golden Boy handlers.
Initially both Williams and his promoter Dan Goosen dismissed talk of a second fight. It isn’t clear at this juncture whether the suspension of the judges will make much difference.
Another mitigating factor might be that Williams vs. Lara was also a WBC Middleweight title eliminator, a title currently held by Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
That fight, should Williams be able to get it, is a much bigger one than a repeat performance with Lara.
Jed Wills, Pitt: “Lara deserves the rematch, the WBC should order the rematch if Williams wants a title shot”
